Football star Kane defends comments about childbirth

HARRY Kane has defended comments praising his fiancée for having no pain relief during the birth of his second daughter, as he said he “learnt a lot from hypnobirthing”.

The England football captain came under fire following a tweet celebrating the birth of his daughter Vivienne Jane Kane with his partner Kate Goodland on Wednesday.

The 25-year-old Tottenham striker said: “So proud of @Kategoodlandx for having the most amazing water birth with no pain relief at all #my girls #hypnobirthing.” But the post led many to criticise the Tottenham striker, with broadcaster Julia Hartley-brewer describing his comments as “absurd”.

The backlash prompted Kane to send a follow-up tweet on Thursday.

“Let’s get one thing straight, any woman can give birth however they would like,” he said. “I’m very proud of my fiancée for doing it the way she wanted and we both learnt a lot from hypnobirthing.”

Hartley-brewer had said: “I’m delighted for @Hkane & his family but why on earth should anyone be ‘proud’ of not having pain relief while giving birth? Utterly absurd! There’s a reason why women get pain relief during labour: because it bloody hurts.”

The Royal College of Midwives said it was important to remember every woman and every birth was different.

Mandy Forrester, head of quality and standards, said: “What is important is that the woman makes her choice about what is right for her and her birth armed with the information she needs to make that choice.”