A maternity scandal

THE scandal of the Shrewsbury and Telford Trust maternity units grows more nightmarish by the day. It’s now feared that more than 60 babies and mothers may have died unavoidably or suffered devastating harm, amid allegations of incompetence by midwives.

Bereaved families claim babies’ heartrates weren’t properly monitored, fatal infections were missed and staff were dangerously obsessed with natural births.

These are grave charges indeed and every death must be forensically investigated. Crucially, the results must be made public.

The NHS is not always good at admitting its mistakes. But if lessons are to be learned from this appalling case, nothing less than full transparency will do.