Holyrood Baby Loss Debate Puts Maternity Safety and Family Support in Focus
The Scottish Parliament came together in a deeply emotional and moving debate marking Baby Loss Awareness Week 2026, with MSPs paying tribute to bereaved families, highlighting continuing shortcomings in maternity care and urging further action to reduce preventable baby deaths. The debate, secured by Patricia Gibson MSP, focused not only on remembrance but on accountability, improvement and support for families living with the consequences of baby loss.
Opening the debate, Patricia Gibson delivered a powerful and personal speech, recounting the loss of her full-term son Kenneth in 2009 following severe complications during what had been described as a “textbook perfect pregnancy”. She argued that too many families continue to experience similar failings and called for the Scottish Government’s maternity review to confront longstanding systemic problems.
Reflecting on her experience, she told Parliament:
“We left the hospital not with a child in the car seat, but with an appointment at the local undertakers to arrange a funeral.”
Ms Gibson warned that lessons are too often promised but not implemented, arguing that: “When things go wrong, the walls go up and the silence comes down.”
She urged ministers to ensure that the ongoing independent review of maternity services examines all health boards, includes robust independent scrutiny, improves data collection and reporting, and tackles what she described as a culture of secrecy and lack of accountability.
Steven Bonnar MSP spoke about the enduring impact of baby loss on entire families, stressing that grief does not diminish because a life was brief: “A life does not become less precious because it was brief. Loss is loss and grief is grief.” He highlighted the importance of community support, remembrance and specialist charities such as the Baby Loss Retreat in Glasgow, telling bereaved parents: “You are not alone. Your precious baby mattered, your grief matters and you do not have to carry that grief alone.”
MSPs across the political spectrum called for improved bereavement care, better mental health support and stronger efforts to prevent avoidable deaths. Jackie Baillie said no parent should be left without specialist help, while Kayleigh Kinross-O’Neill and Helen McDade raised gaps in miscarriage data and the need to learn from every baby death. David Linden praised Patricia Gibson’s leadership and, drawing on his family’s own recent loss, described the particular difficulty fathers can face in expressing grief. He urged ministers to work more closely with charities and address cross-border differences between Scotland and England that can leave some losses without formal recognition.
Meghan Gallacher said the debate showed Parliament at its best and praised charities including Held In Our Hearts but warned that support remains inconsistent across Scotland. She called for a national framework setting minimum bereavement standards, expansion of the Hospital to Home service, routine specialist mental health support and more overnight accommodation for parents in neonatal units. While welcoming the maternity review, she urged the Government to make practical improvements now so that support is stronger, more consistent and available wherever families live.
Responding for the Scottish Government, Mental Wellbeing and Public Health Minister Maree Todd acknowledged the devastating impact of baby loss and paid tribute to families who shared their experiences. She said the independent maternity services review would examine safety, quality, governance and culture, with a focus on reducing avoidable harm, improving accountability and consistency of care, and strengthening learning from adverse events and patient experiences.
The Government intends to build on bereavement care pathways, strengthen support for families experiencing miscarriage, stillbirth and neonatal loss, and work with NHS boards, clinicians, charities and bereaved families to improve outcomes and shape future reforms and national standards. Ms Todd reaffirmed its commitment to reducing stillbirths and neonatal deaths and recognised the work of Sands, Simba, Held In Our Hearts and Ayrshire Baby Loss Support.
For more information on the support available for bereaved families, visit Support for bereaved families – gov.scot
