To ask the Minister of Health for an update on the briefings she has received from her officials in relation to acquiring the resources to allow the Health Service to provide three cycles of IVF, as recommended in the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines.

Firstly, let me say, I do not underestimate the importance of this subject and I know that these are matters which cause many couples great emotional and financial stress.

This year marks the 30th anniversary of the first baby born in the North as a result of IVF. Publicly funded fertility services have been available since 2001. Access to publicly funded services is based on eligibility criteria agreed after public consultation in 2006 and updated following a further public consultation in 2009.

The current publicly funded service provision in the north (also established in 2009) is that one cycle of IVF (or similar fertility treatment) is provided to eligible patients and, provided the patient was referred on or after 1 April 2012, when the technology was introduced at the Regional Fertility Clinic, one frozen embryo transfer.

The Department has endorsed the 2013 National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) Clinical Guideline on Fertility which recommends, among other things, that women should be offered three full cycles of IVF. However, regrettably, due to budget pressures, it has not yet been possible to implement this. This is due to the significant cost implications of implementation which have to be carefully considered within the context of ongoing budget pressures and other competing HSC services requiring new investment in the years ahead.

While I am currently unable to provide a timescale for full implementation of the guideline, I am keeping the situation under review. I am currently considering briefing from officials on options for future service provision. These options are being costed and I can advise you that, while funding an increase in the number of treatment cycles will remain a challenge, I intend to examine all practical options for improving the service currently offered.