Best of the Spectator Spectator Out Loud: Lisa Haseldine, Roya Nikkah & Lionel Shriver
May 11, 2026
Lisa Haseldine, journalist on health and social issues, reads and discusses a feature on the crisis in UK maternity services. She covers neonatal tragedies, rising maternal harm, staffing shortages and a postcode lottery of care. The conversation touches on financial costs, calls for reform and whether change will actually happen.
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Culture And Training Failures Worsen Outcomes
- Training and culture problems amplify harm: concerns are often dismissed, normal-birth ideology persisted in midwifery colleges, and childbirth trauma training is neither mandatory nor standardised.
- This postcode lottery yields uneven care and contributes to bias by class, race, and age.
Maternity Negligence Drives Massive NHS Liabilities
- Maternity negligence is financially crippling the NHS: such claims account for over 60% of clinical negligence costs and liabilities hit £60 billion.
- Average compensation for severe obstetric claims (cerebral palsy/brain damage) reached £11.2 million in 2024–25.
Theo Clarke Turned Personal Injury Into Parliamentary Campaign
- Former MP Theo Clarke suffered a traumatic 40-hour labour that left her injured and led her to campaign on birth trauma and the postcode lottery.
- Clarke led parliamentary debates, founded an APPG on birth trauma, published an inquiry report, and pushed for an independent maternity commissioner.