...to think the [now free] morning-after pill for young girls is a dreadful indictment of our permissive society?

[ftm42]

Just been listening to news on breakfast TV. Quotes as follows [as close as poss]

"...morning after pill prescribed now for free in Wales to under 16s..."

"...highest level of teenage pregnancies in Europe..."

I wonder if there's a link between those 2 quotes?

DUH!!!

Am I alone in thinking that the more you give kids a 'get-out of jail card', the more they'll have sex when they aren't ready? Why can't we teach our kids to

JUST SAY NO!

Accidents happen, they always have, but for goodness sake, in making it easier to get an abortion [that's what it is, let's not beat around the bush here] doesn't it make it easier to get pregnant in the first place as you can always get rid of it. Have we sunk so low to think we can throw it all away and then fix it later by "getting rid".

Garbage. I'm 50. When I was 14/15 (in the mid 1970's) loads of my friends (top stream, single-sex Grammar school) were sexually active. No MAP. It didn't stop 'em shagging. If you got pregnant you had an abortion. And they did. Lots of them. Not something that your mums would probably admit to , but it's what our generation did. The social stigma against young single parents was enormous.

Give our daughters the MAP any day.

Yeah fuck them, what we need is more kids having babies.

The morning after pill has always been available to women of any age as a free prescription. All contraceptives are free on prescription from a doctor. So under 16s getting it free is nothing new at all. It has always been that way!

About ten years ago, shops were able to sell it from the pharmacy counter as busy women might have preferred to pay for it than waste half a working day going to the doctors. I used it a couple of years ago when my coil fell out, and was pleased to see it was free in local tesco. This was an arrangement tesco pharmacy had come to to alleviate pressure on gps. All appropriate medical questions were asked.

A teenager choosing to obtain emergency contraception is at least making a responsible choice. Let's not make it difficult for them to do that. It is not an abortion pill. If a teenager had to bunk off school to go to a clinic, they may not get the map in time. I'd rather they were not having sex under 16. And I'd rather they were using reliable contraception and condoms. But if that fails, the map is an imoortant safety net.

I agree up to a point of course, but the response to orangeeyebrows question gives me pause. If my ten year old dd were requesting contraception, someone better bloody tell me about it!

The OP has used unmoderated language and of course the morning after pill should be available. But I hope it would be available alongside advice about contraception, stable relationships and support where required. Taking abuse out of the equation, I have a 12 year old daughter at a selective church school where they have just done reproduction in science. I have been disappointed that there has been little accompanying relationship advice, no mention of the word love, simply the mechanics.

Another poster recalled 14/15 year olds having sex and abortions at her selective grammar in the mid 70's. I was in a similar situation but within a week of the school finding out she was 5 months pregnant we did reproduction - she didn't benefit - she had already been expelled. I certainly don't remember anyone having sex below the 6th form.

I would also like to see generally those in nursing, teaching and social services adopt a more family orientated approach to family planning and teenage sex where the importance of the father's involvement and stable long term relationships from conception onwards is given a much higher priority in both social and economic terms.

The OP made the point about the UK having the highest rate of teenage pregnancies in Europe - I thought there had been research linking this to the fact that the UK is not a catholic nation and has less strong family units than other European countries.

If my teenage (14) daughter told me she was pregnant (God forbid) she would be taking the MAP. No two ways about it. Shoot me.

Might be pregnant not was [rolly eyes emoticon]