WOMEN WHO LOSE A BABY SHOULD BE GIVEN TIME OFF WORK

First Minister tells of own loss and says:

WOMEN who lose their babies during preg- nancy should be given specific miscarriage leave, Nicola Sturgeon said yesterday. The First Minister hailed plans being considered in New Zealand which would allow parents who lose a baby at any stage in pregnancy to take paid time off work.

Appearing on daytime television show Loose Women, she spoke openly of her own experience of miscarriage, saying it was ‘heartbreaking and really traumatic’ for her and husband Peter Murrell.

The SNP leader suffered the loss of a baby in 2011, at the age of 40.

Miss Sturgeon publicly revealed this for the first time in 2016, when she said: ‘Sometimes, for whatever reason, having a baby just doesn’t happen – no matter how much we

might want it to.’ Her comments yesterday came as the panel on the popular ITV show discussed the New Zealand plan.

The move, supported by the country’s prime minister Jacinda Ardern, would allow bereaved women and their partners up to three days’ paid leave. Asked for her view, Miss Sturgeon said: ‘I would support that.’

Miscarriage affects nearly 6,000 women in Scotland every year, with one in six pregnancies ending in the loss of a baby before 24 weeks.

Miss Sturgeon said she does not believe ‘you should have to take leave if you don’t feel that’s something you need to do’, but claimed the option should be available.

‘I think there should be much greater understanding – society should try and adapt a bit more,’ she added.

Employment law is reserved, meaning the UK Government is responsible for such legislation.

In the UK, a miscarriage before the end of week 24 of pregnancy does not qualify for bereavement leave. But a mother is eligible for maternity leave and associated pay if she has a stillborn baby after this date.

Miss Sturgeon signalled that she would support miscarriage leave for expectant fathers too, adding: ‘If it’s hard for a woman to talk about it, it’s possibly even harder for a man. It’s heartbreaking and really

‘Heartbreaking and really traumatic’

traumatic for a man as well.’ She added that she hoped speaking out about her own experience would help others.

‘I feel really strongly about removing the stigma around miscarriage,’ Miss Sturgeon said. ‘People don’t talk about being pregnant until after three months.

‘The whole implication of that is if you miscarry you keep it to yourself – it’s a difficult thing to go through when you can’t talk to anybody apart from your partner. I think that makes it more difficult.’

Miss Sturgeon suffered a miscarriage days before the 2011 Holyrood election campaign started. She was in the early stages of pregnancy and had been preparing to tell her family that she was expecting a baby.

Instead of dealing with the grief at home, she attended the 40th anniversary of the 1971 Ibrox disaster, in which 66 Rangers football supporters died.

Asked by the Loose Women panel if she feels judged because she does not have children, Miss Sturgeon said: ‘Judged from time to time, yes, but constantly asked about. For a period of my life, almost every interview I did, I got asked that question.

‘It’s OK for a while in your 20s, 30s... later on I think it becomes a bit more intrusive.

‘I went public about the fact that I had a miscarriage some years ago. That was in part about trying to play a small part in removing the taboo and stigma around miscarriage, but also it was, in a way I suppose, me trying to stop getting asked that question all of the time.

‘In truth, there’s lots of reasons why women don’t have children.’

Miss Sturgeon said there was an ‘assumption’ that she had made a ‘hard-nosed decision’ to put her career before having a family, but this was not the case. She added: ‘I did give a lot of priority to having a career. I guess it wasn’t until later that I started to think about whether I wanted children or not. I said what happened.

‘I don’t think women should be judged for the reasons why they do or don’t have children. Men aren’t, and it’s one of these areas where we need to see progress.’

Miscarriage Association national director Ruth Bender Atik welcomed Miss Sturgeon’s support for bereavement leave.

She said: ‘It is only recently that bereavement leave was offered to parents of a stillborn child, that took a lot of hard work and campaigning. They had to lobby for that, and ask difficult questions about “what if a baby lives, is that still a child?”.

‘With losses before 20 weeks there is no certificate of birth or death, there is no requirement for a funeral, legally, if the parents do not want it.

‘Bereavement leave is another step... it would be an acknowledgement of the loss experienced and that really matters to people, and that really would be appreciated.’