In March 2019 the Ministry of Justice launched a consultation on the coronial investigations of stillbirths. The MoJ Release stated:
“We are…very pleased to publish this consultation, which seeks views on proposals for introducing coronial investigations of stillbirth cases in England and Wales. This consultation has been prepared jointly by the Ministry of Justice and the Department of Health and Social Care and is an important step towards delivering the Government’s commitment to reduce the rate of stillbirths.
In addition to introducing greater transparency to the way in which stillbirths are investigated, the Government’s proposals would ensure that bereaved parents are involved at all stages of the investigation, and that any learning that can be taken from such investigations is disseminated across the health system to help prevent future avoidable stillbirths.
At the same time as the Government has been developing its proposals, a Private Member’s Bill, Tim Loughton MP’s Civil Partnerships, Marriages and Deaths (Registration Etc) Bill, has made its way through Parliament. The Bill is now subject to its Royal Assent and will place a duty on the Secretary of State to make arrangements for the preparation and publication of a report on whether, and if so how, coroners should investigate stillbirths.
The Bill also provides a power for the Lord Chancellor to make provision, through secondary legislation, for stillbirth investigations by coroners if, following publication of that report, this is considered appropriate”.
At the April meeting of the All Party Parliamentary Group for Baby Loss, https://www.lullabytrust.org.uk/about-us/who-we-are/appg/ Antoinette Sandbach MP, urged all members of the group to take part in this consultation. A summary of the key points of this consultation were presented to the APPG:
- Coroners will have powers to investigate all full-term stillbirths occurring from 37 weeks pregnancy
- The coroner will consider whether any lessons can be learned which could prevent future stillbirths
- Coroners will not have to gain consent or permission from any third party in exercising this power
- Coronial investigations will not replace current investigations undertaken by the hospital or NHS agencies”
The new system is proposed to help provide an independent assessment of stillbirth, improve parental involvement in the process, and contribute to system-wide learning. More information is available here:
https://consult.justice.gov.uk/digital-communications/coronial-investigations-of-stillbirths-short/
The consultation closed on 18th June 2019.