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Life Expectancy

Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the average life span for (a) males and (b) females in each country in the EU; and what assessment he has made of the factors underlying variations. [36890]

Mr. Horam: The table supplies details of the average expectation of life at birth for males and females in the United Kingdom and other European Union countries. The causes of health variations are complex. They are associated with a range of often interacting factors, including geography, socio-economic status, gender, ethnicity, life style and environment.

Expectation of life at birth in European Union countries, circa 1993

		Expectation of life at birth (years)
Country	Year	Males	Females
United Kingdom	(20)1992	73.6	79.1
Austria	1994	73.4	79.9
Belgium	1989	72.3	79.1
Denmark	1993	72.7	77.9
Finland	1993	72.1	79.6
France	1992	73.8	82.3
Germany	1994	73.1	79.7
Greece	1993	75.0	80.4
Ireland	1992	72.6	78.2
Italy	1991	73.7	80.5
Luxembourg	1993	72.4	79.3
Netherlands	1993	74.0	80.1
Portugal	1993	70.6	77.9
Spain	1992	73.8	81.3
Sweden	1992	75.5	81.1

Source:

World Health Organisation European Office 'Health for All' database.

Note:

(20) More up to date figures from the Government Actuary's Department indicate an average expectation of life in the United Kingdom in 1994 of 74.2 years for men and 79.4 years for women.

Abortion

Mr. Bendall: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the statistically most likely candidate for an abortion within the North Thames region in the latest year for which figures are available in terms of (a) age of the woman, (b) marital status of the woman, (c) the number of previous children of the woman and (d) the grounds under which the abortion is performed. [37006]

Mr. Horam: Statistically most likely candidate for an abortion for each of the variables listed is defined as the category with the highest recorded frequency of legal terminations. The information is based on all legal terminations in the North Thames region in 1993.

The categories with the highest frequencies found in each of the variable listed were:

age of the woman: 20 to 24 age group comprised 29.3 per cent--10,449--of all terminations;
material status of the woman: single women comprised 67.3 per cent.--23.963--of all terminations;
number of previous children of the women: women with no previous live and still born children comprised 55.6 per cent.--19,808--of all terminations; and

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grounds under which the abortion is performed: statutory ground C alone comprised 92.3 per cent.--32.869--of all terminations. Ground C is defined as meaning that the continuance of the pregnancy would involve risk, greater than if the pregnancy were terminated, of injury to the physical or mental health of the pregnant woman.

Mr. Bendall: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the statistically most likely candidate for an abortion within the North Thames region after the 24 week of pregnancy in the latest year for which figures are available in terms of (a) age of the woman, (b) marital status of the woman, (c) number of previous children of the woman and (d) grounds under which the abortion is performed. [37005]

Mr. Horam: The statistically most likely candidate for an abortion for each of the variables listed is defined as the category with the highest recorded frequency of legal terminations. The information is based on all legal terminations in the North Thames region in 1993.

The categories with the highest frequencies found in each of the variables listed were:

age of the woman: 30 to 34 age group comprised 31.5 per cent.--6--of all post-24th week terminations;
marital status of the woman: married women comprised 79 per cent.--15--of all post-24th week terminations;
number of previous children of the women: women with no previous live and still born children comprised 47.4 per cent.--9--of all post-24th week gestation terminations; and
grounds under which the abortion is performed: statutory ground E accounted for all the cases--19--of post-24th week terminations. Ground E means that there is a substantial risk that if the child were born it would suffer from such physical or mental abnormalities as to be seriously handicapped.

Mrs. Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the statistically most likely candidate for an abortion within the Northern and Yorkshire region in the latest year for which figures are available in terms of (a) the age of the woman, (b) the marital status of the woman, (c) the number of previous children of the woman and (d) the grounds under which the abortion is performed. [36931]

Mr. Horam: The statistically most likely candidate for an abortion for each of the variables listed is defined as the category with the highest recorded frequency of legal terminations. The percentages are based on all legal terminations in the Northern and Yorkshire region in 1993.

The categories with the highest frequencies found in each of the variables were:

age of the woman: 20 to 24 age group comprised 30.3 per cent.--4,953-- of all terminations;
marital status of the woman: single women comprised 65.3 per cent.--10,685--of all terminations;
number of previous children of the woman: women with no previous live and still born children comprised 50.2 per cent.--8,203--of all terminations; and
legal grounds under which the abortion is performed: statutory ground C alone comprised 87.3 per cent.--14,274--of all terminations. Ground C is defined as meaning that the continuance of the pregnancy would involve risk, greater than if the pregnancy were terminated, of injury to the physical or mental health of the pregnant woman.

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Mrs. Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the statistically most likely candidate for an abortion within the Northern and Yorkshire region after the 24 week of pregnancy in the latest year for which figures are available in terms of (a) the age of the woman, (b) the marital status of the woman, (c) the number of previous children of the woman and (d) the grounds under which the abortion is performed. [36932]

Mr. Horam: The statistically most likely candidate for an abortion for each of the variables listed is defined as the category with the highest recorded frequency of legal terminations. The percentages are based on all legal terminations in the Northern and Yorkshire region in 1993.

The categories with the highest frequencies found in each of the variables were:

age of the woman: 25 to 29 age group comprised 100 per cent.--2--of all post-24th week terminations;
marital status of the woman: married women comprised 100 per cent.--2--of all post-24th week terminations;
number of previous children of the woman: women with two or more previous live and stillborn children comprised 100 per cent.--2--of all post-24th week gestation terminations; and
grounds under which the abortion is performed: statutory ground E accounted for all the cases--2--of post-24th week terminations. Ground E is defined as meaning that there is substantial risk that if the child were born it would suffer from such physical or mental abnormalities as to be seriously handicapped.

Leucodystrophies

Mr. Redmond: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research his Department has commissioned into a national case note review of unclassified leucodystrophies and leucoencephalopathies; and if he will make a statement. [37185]

Mr. Horam: None. Information on research commissioned by the Department of Health is contained in "Centrally Commissioned Research Programme" and "Centrally Commissioned Research Programme: Commissions 1994-95", copies of which are available in the Library.

Breast Screening

Mr. Redmond: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proposals he has to introduce a national breast screening programme to women aged 65 to 69 years; and if he will make a statement. [37198]

Mr. Horam: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave the hon. Member for Leeds, West (Mr. Battle) on 4 December 1995 at columns 38-39.

Dental Services

Mr. Redmond: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he expects to meet the commitments set out in his letter of 20 November 1995 to the Association of

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Community Health Councils in England and Wales; and if he will make a statement. [37179]

Mr. Malone: The Government are committed to an accessible, high quality national health service general dental service. We will continue to take the action necessary to meet that commitment.

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