Listen now 28 mins In 1997 the newly elected Labour government
was quick to take measures against teenage motherhood. In 1999
they published a seminal document which became hugely
influential in shifting both the public's and policy makers'
ideas of the 'problem' of teenage pregnancy. The report was
underpinned by a drive to tackle social exclusion. The report's
tone was set in its foreword where Tony Blair described youthful
pregnancy as leading to 'shattered lives and blighted futures'.
But teenage fertility was highest 4 decades ago in 1971 with 51
births per 1000 in women under 20. Since then the numbers have
halved. In this programme Miranda Sawyer hears from leading
social scientists who argue that public policy has ignored
evidence which shows that far from shattered lives and blighted
futures, teenage mothers and their children can and do lead
happy, healthy lives. This page is best viewed in an up-to-date
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