Edinburgh MP reveals lack of consistent guidance to midwives in Scotland

The MP for Edinburgh North and Leith, Tracy Gilbert, has revealed a lack of consistent guidance for midwives in Scotland caring for surrogate mothers and babies. 

Through Freedom of Information requests the Edinburgh North and Leith MP uncovered serious gaps in advice for midwives and the clinical teams of which they are a part, when supporting births where a surrogacy arrangement is in place.

The MP asked all Scotland’s NHS Boards and found that only NHS Ayrshire & Arran and NHS Fife have active guidance in place for midwives in these circumstances.

Of the remaining NHS Boards:

• Five have no policy at all
• Four have a policy where the review is overdue
• One has a policy currently in draft form
• One referred to Department of Health and Social Care guidance

Ms Gilbert raised the issue during a debate on the Infants, Parents and Carers Bill in the House of Commons, warning that midwives and maternity teams should not be left to navigate these legal, clinical and safeguarding issues without clear and up-to-date guidance.

She warned that the lack of consistent guidance could leave maternity staff without the information they need to ensure surrogate mothers and babies receive the best possible care.

Speaking after raising the issue in Parliament, she said: “Every mother and baby deserves the very best care with their needs put first in all decisions. However, I have exposed worrying gaps in the guidance available in some areas of the country for staff caring for families involved in surrogacy.

“In many cases midwives will come across no or very few surrogacy cases in their careers; up-to-date guidance is therefore even more essential so that those midwives have access to the support and signposting that they need. The Scottish Government should now make sure that health boards across Scotland have this important guidance in place.”

Ms Gilbert found the following with an FOI request: