The government have withdrawn funding for Breastfeeding Awareness Week this year. I am sure many of you agree that this is a short sighted way to cut spending as breastfeeding saves money (and lives). Breastfed babies cost the NHS less. Anyway – Lactivist.net will still be running (funded from sales of pro breastfeeding goodies at www.lactivist.co.uk and by advertisers sponsorship) and I’ll still have competitions and giveaways on the facebook page.
I’ve set up a petition to ask the Dept of Health to continue to fund Breastfeeding Awareness Week.
http://www.petitiononline.com/fundBFAW/petition.html
please take a moment to sign it.
The 10 Downing St website says ‘In line with the commitments in the Programme for Government published in May 2010, e-petitions that receive 100,000 signatures or more will be eligible for debate in Parliament.’ They will continue to issue responses to e-petitions that exceed the 500-signature threshold but if we could get this to Parliament it would stand more chance of working.
Please share this link around – if you think I need to revise the wording just let me know.
This is the official news:
The Department of Health has withdrawn its funding for National Breastfeeding Awareness Week this year.
The annual campaign to promote breastfeeding was scheduled to take place between Sunday, 19 June and Saturday, 25 June, 2011, but a spokesman for the Department of Health has confirmed that no funding would be available this year.
She said: “The department is unable to offer any funding this year for National Breastfeeding Week.
“However, support and information is currently available to health professionals and parents via NHS Choices, the National Breastfeeding Helpline, UNICEF UK Baby Friendly Initiative and the peer support programmes.
“We value the work being done by many of the dedicated professional bodies and other organisations in this area who, along with the government, are committed to promoting breastfeeding.
“During this transition phase, we will be considering how infant nutrition will be delivered to support better health outcomes.”
The spokesman added: “We hope that the good work continues, enabling key partners to plan and run coordinated events and activities in support of breastfeeding.
“As part of the government’s Big Society agenda, we will continue to provide information to key partners to support and encourage local activities to deliver better health outcomes.”
http://nhslocal.nhs.uk/story/government-withdraws-breastfeeding-awareness-week-cash
I guess the Dept of Health is keen to keep in with a prime minister who released PR pictures of himself bottle feeding his baby.
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