UK poll highlights fears about access to emergency contraception

Almost half of the UK population believe it would be difficult to access emergency contraception on a Sunday, while nearly two-thirds think they would struggle after 10pm, according to a survey. The research, carried out by YouGov, found that only 7% of people believe it would be difficult to access emergency contraception during the daytime on a weekday. The data, released by the College of Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare, was based on a representative sample of 2,115 people from across the UK. The college is calling for oral emergency contraception to be reclassified under the general sales list, which would allow it to be sold directly from shops, much like paracetamol, antihistamine tablets and antiseptic creams. Emergency contraception, commonly known as “the morning-after pill”, is available at high street pharmacies, sexual health clinics, GP surgeries and NHS walk-in centres. But it is not stocked alongside over-the-counter medicines at corner shops, petrol stations and supermarkets. People living in the south-west of England, Northern Ireland or Wales most commonly thought emergency contraception would be difficult to access on a Sunday, while those in the south-west or east of England were most likely to believe it would hard to find at night. Londoners were the most likely to think access to emergency contraception would be possible on a Sunday, or after 10pm. …