Caesarean section rates in the United Kingdom continue to be a topic of importance in both the medical and lay press. In previous years most of the discussion has been about what the correct caesarean section rate should be. More recently the debate has focused on whether a woman has the right to choose to have her baby delivered by caesarean section in the absence of a medical indication. This has medical implications, in terms of short and long term complications for the woman, but also carries a financial burden that the National Health Service can ill afford.