Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Markham on 9 February (HL2132) where they stated that they are "inviting views from third parties on abortion statistics for England and Wales, including the future publication of abortion complications data", how they intend to (1) collect, (2) collate, (3) analyse, and (4) respond, to that data; and how they intend to share that information more widely to allow parliamentarians to scrutinise and measure the efficacy of current policy on telemedicine.

The statistics used in the publication Complications from abortions in England are official statistics in development. In accordance with the Office for Statistics Regulation’s guidance, we have ensured that users are involved and can contribute to the future of this publication. We are currently collecting feedback via two methods: an anonymous online form; and our abortion statistics mailbox. Both are publicly advertised online, and anyone is welcome to respond.

We will collate and analyse feedback on an ongoing basis to ensure that we take account of the opinions of those using our statistics, as we develop them. Collation and analysis will be undertaken in line with the Government’s statistical standards.

Finally, the Office for Statistics Regulation advises a proportionate approach to feedback that is targeted on gathering the required information, which is why we have implemented the mentioned collection methods. The aim of these collection methods is to inform and update our abortion publications, and we do not plan on sharing this feedback externally.