“Dad” has been removed from a taxpayer-funded baby guide after a single complaint that same-sex couples were being excluded.
The Scottish NHS guide, called Ready Steady Baby, now features the word “partner” instead of “Dad”.
Critics said the health service should not be wasting money on such a change.
Not inclusive
The pregnancy and parenthood guide, which is 220 pages long, has been given to parents for the last 14 years.
But following one complaint that the book was “not inclusive of people in same-sex relationships”, the NHS in Scotland replaced all references to “Dad”.
Norman Wells, Director of the Family Education Trust, said: “The NHS should not be squandering tax payers’ money to advance the cause of a minority interest group.”
He continued: “No matter how much effort is made to present positive images of families headed by same-sex couples, the fact remains it takes a man and a woman to create a child.”
Waste
Campaign group TaxpayerScotland commented: “It’s barmy that the NHS is wasting money reprinting guides because of a single complaint.”
It continued: “The NHS has bigger priorities than prescribing how to define who wants to be called dad.”
A spokesman for NHS health Scotland said: “It is standard practice to review publications on a yearly basis, if not more often.”
Complaint
He continued: “At the time this complaint was received the Ready Steady Baby text had just been through its annual review, changes made and the new edition was printed in December 2011.
“The review process identified the need to use language that was more inclusive, particularly in relation to same sex partnerships.”
A spokesman for the Department of Health, which produces a similar guide in England, said there were no plans to remove the word “Dad” from its publication.