EDM 1148: Black Maternal Health Awareness Week 2025

That this House notes with concern that Black women in the UK are still three times more likely to die during pregnancy or childbirth, and Asian women are two times more likely; is further concerned by reports from MMBRACE UK’s maternity mortality data which indicates a statistically significant increase in the overall maternal death rate in the UK in 2020-22 and that this increase remained statistically significant when deaths due to covid-19 were excluded; acknowledges that racial disparities persist in maternity care, with ethnic minority women more likely to experience poorer health outcomes, substandard care, and higher rates of complications during pregnancy and childbirth; recognises that factors contributing to these disparities include structural racism, unconscious bias, socioeconomic inequalities, and gaps in culturally competent care; urges the NHS to ensure that all maternity services adopt targeted policies to address inequalities, including better access to interpreters, community midwives, and tailored perinatal mental health support for ethnic minority mothers; welcomes the Government’s commitment to set a target to end the racial disparity in maternity care but regrets that one has not yet been set; and calls on the Government to establish a national strategy to eliminate racial disparities in maternity care, with clear accountability mechanisms and measurable targets.