NHS maternity units often cover up harmful errors in childbirth, report finds
Guardian2 days
UK Maternity Care Probe Alleges Racism, Shortages
Is racism and unsafe care in NHS maternity services contributing to baby deaths or are lifestyle choices to blame for disparities?
Above: Entrance to the maternity unit at QEQM Hospital in Margate, Kent, U.K., on Feb. 13, 2020. Image credit: Gareth Fuller/PA Images/Getty Images
The Spin
Left narrative
NHS maternity services are plagued by unacceptable systemic racism where Asian women get stereotyped as "princesses" and Black women's pain gets dismissed as if they have "tough skin." Staff shortages force women to give birth in corridors with leaking roofs while hospitals cover up their deadly mistakes and falsify records to bereaved families. The system fails women and babies with devastating consequences through cruel comments, discrimination and a brazen lack of accountability. This destructive cycle at the NHS must end.
Right narrative
The higher rates of stillbirths and infant mortality among Black and Asian mothers stem partly from lifestyle and biological factors, not structural racism alone. Pakistani heritage families experience higher infant mortality because of higher inter-family marriage patterns, creating higher risks of birth complications. Black women face more pregnancy difficulties partly because of above-average obesity rates. Baroness Amos' report risks obscuring universal NHS accountability failures by attributing these complex disparities primarily to racism.
Establishment-critical narrative
The Amos report echoes concerns raised during the Lucy Letby case, where systemic ward failures were largely overlooked while blame was placed on a single nurse. Families and staff reported that institutional self-protection—note redactions, limited transparency, and deflection of accountability — obscured wider safety issues. Real change will require confronting these cultural and structural problems head-on.
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© 2026 Improve the News Foundation.
All rights reserved.
Version 6.18.0