No doubt it will argue that as one in three secondary schools already has a drop-in clinic – where condoms, the pill and the morning after pill are available – the long-acting reversible contraception (LARC) is the next logical and sensible step. It is another depressing example of the Government's muddled thinking on the matter. No statistical evidence suggests that levels of teenage pregnancy would drop because of LARC. There is, however, genuine concern about the promotion of promiscuity, the rate sexually transmitted diseases might climb as a consequence of increased sexual activity – and the younger age at which it could begin.

The Government needs to re-think and re-draft its strategy. In truth, there is no substitute for education, not only in the classroom but also and more importantly in the home.

Encouraging parental responsibility is paramount and, if successful, the results would be appreciably more powerful than any pill or injection.