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Written question asked by Angela Crawley (Scottish National Party) on Monday, 12 September 2016, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 14 September 2016. It was answered by Baroness Blackwood of North Oxford (Conservative) on Friday, 16 September 2016 on behalf of the Department of Health.


Migrants: Detainees

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps the Government takes to establish whether a woman is pregnant while in detention at an immigration removal centre.

Answer

NHS England advise that disclosure of pregnancy of women in held in immigration removal centres (IRCs) in England is at the behest of the individual concerned. The health assessment carried out at reception screening would ask if pregnancy was a possibility and a subsequent pregnancy test would confirm this, provided that consent was given.

The Home Office is currently consulting on mandatory new guidelines for its operational staff, “Care and Management of Pregnant women in Detention”. This will apply to staff operating in IRCs and other parts of the detention estate in England and is expected to be published this year.


Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
45862
Session
2016-17
Transferred
Yes
Subjects
Detainees Migrants Pregnancy
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk