Asked by: Julian Brazier (Conservative - Canterbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the prevalence of the pre-signing of abortion (HSA1) certificates since the conclusion of the Care Quality Commission's 2012 investigations into abortion clinics.
Answered by Jane Ellison
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) previously investigated the prevalence of the pre-signing of abortion (HSA1) certificates due to a specific request in 2012. The CQC has put in place information for its own staff to help identify if pre-signing or other instances of non-compliance are taking place to make sure that such cases would be picked up during inspections. This is in line with how the CQC would handle any information of concern identified during an inspection.
If a CQC inspection identifies pre-signing or other instances of non-compliance with the Health and Social Care Act and Regulations then appropriate regulatory action will be taken. This includes reporting any concerns in relation to termination of pregnancy practice to the Department. The Department has not received any notification of pre-signing of abortion certificates from the CQC since these inspections.
Asked by: Julian Brazier (Conservative - Canterbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions his Department has had with the General Medical Council about the pre-signing of abortion certificates since January 2012.
Answered by Jane Ellison
Departmental officials have met with the General Medical Council (GMC) on several occasions since February 2012 where abortion issues, including pre-signing of abortion HSA1 certificates, were discussed. In addition, I also met with the GMC recently to discuss abortion issues.