Oct 6, 2009 / 22:56 pm
A spokesman for the Catholic Church has compared a Scottish government plan to set up sex clinics in all secondary schools to “pouring petrol on a fire.”
The government’s report, titled “Do the Right Thing,” plans to create clinics that will offer school pupils free condoms and pregnancy tests. Government ministers hope the clinics will curb the spread of sexually transmitted diseases and stop teen pregnancies, the Daily Record reports.
The clinics will be open to students under the age of 16. Parents will be notified only if the nurses who run the clinics think they are being abused or exploited.
A government spokeswoman said it was “vital” that young people’s services be available “when and where they require them.” She told the Daily Record that services will be provided in all schools that can do so. Where schools cannot provide clinics, an alternative will be provided within 20 minutes’ walking distance.