Oral Hormone Pregnancy Tests

Caroline Nokes Excerpts

Thursday 23rd October 2014 Commons Chamber

[Caroline Nokes (Romsey and Southampton North) (Con)]

I, too, congratulate the hon. Member for Bolton South East (Yasmin Qureshi) on having secured this important debate. I will keep my comments brief because, unlike many other Members present, I come to this subject quite late, and solely through a constituency interest; one of my constituents contacted me. I congratulate the hon. Member for City of Durham (Roberta Blackman-Woods) on her in-depth knowledge; sadly, I will not be able to add much to that.

I simply want to comment on the contact I have had from my constituent, who first approached me on this issue back in the summer. He desperately wanted to come to the launch of the all-party parliamentary group—I congratulate those Members who have set it up, perhaps particularly my hon. Friend the Member for Enfield North (Nick de Bois), who has worked tirelessly on this issue—but could not attend because his daughter, Vicky, was in hospital. She remained in hospital for 11 weeks. She underwent three major operations, and very nearly died during one of them. All that was entirely due to the fact that her mother had taken an oral hormone pregnancy test some 42 years ago. I know it is 42 years ago, because it particularly struck me that Vicky was born in the same year as me, 1972, which is well after it was known that there were problems with oral hormone pregnancy tests. That information had not been communicated to GPs.

We all know how quickly information now spreads, particularly via the internet, so if there are ever any concerns about medication or medical treatment, we very quickly learn about them. It seems incredible that in 1970 there were known to be problems, yet that information was not communicated to GPs until 1975. Vicky was born during the five-year window when the problems were well known and the drug had had its licence removed but it was still being prescribed by practitioners.

Vicky has a phenomenal raft of problems that were caused by the drug. She was born with an ectopic bladder and malformations of her feet and legs. She also has an incomplete pelvis and significant spinal problems. She is doubly incontinent, and for the past 24 years she has been confined to a wheelchair. She is unable to walk at all. I have met her several times, and when I first met her I had no idea what had caused her disability. I just knew her as a really lively, bubbly, enthusiastic member of the Romsey disability forum. It was not until her father contacted me and explained how her problems had come about that I began to appreciate what had caused her disability and how preventable it was. She could have been born completely healthy, had her mother not been given those drugs.

Vicky’s family have been quite amazing. They are really courageous and brave, and they were determined to hear the issue debated on the Floor of the House of Commons. They are pleased that it is being discussed today. What they and many other families want is the transparency that other Members have been calling for. They want to know what is in the documents that have not yet been made publicly available, and they would like me to urge the Minister—as many other colleagues have done today—to ensure that they are made available.

The family also want closure, and I do not think that that is unreasonable. We have heard from other Members that closure is critical to these families. The family support the calls for an independent panel to examine the documents, to come to an understanding of what went wrong and to give them the answers that they so desperately seek. I do not think those are big asks. In fact, they are really very modest and reasonable, and I sincerely hope that the Minister will be able to grant the wishes of the many families who have campaigned for so long, and give them the answers they are looking for.