Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to add additional Trusts to the National Maternity and Neonatal Investigation following the removal of (a) Shropshire and (b) Leeds.

Baroness Amos does not intend to select other trusts for local review to replace either Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust or Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust in her National Maternity and Neonatal Investigation.

Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust was removed from the list of local trusts following the decision of my Rt. Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State of Health and Social Care, to commission a separate independent inquiry. Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust was removed following recent discussions with West Mercia Police about the details and schedule of their ongoing investigation.

The remaining 12 trusts that are in the independent National Maternity and Neonatal Investigation still includes a variation in case mix, trust type, geographic and demographic coverage and views expressed by families. By taking this approach, the investigation can capture learning from a wide range of provision and experiences, ensuring the findings are relevant across the system.