The League says the Prison Service is still getting it wrong

Pregnant Prisoners Still Being Cuffed Say Campaigners

The Howard League said a survey it had carried out of women's prisons showed that too little account was taken of the special needs of expectant mothers.

It claimed some pregnant women were still being handcuffed for hospital visits, despite assurances given last year by the then Home Secretary, Michael Howard.

The report cited the case of a woman who was shackled to an officer when being taken for a routine scan. The cuffs were only removed at the insistence of the medical staff when the woman was lying on the couch.

The League's Director, Frances Crook, said she was particularly concerned about the high levels of stress, anxiety and frustration experienced by pregnant women in jail: "Pregnant women should not be sent to prison. Women in prison are generally not dangerous offenders from whom the public needs protecting."

She added that the imprisonment of an expectant mother would only have an adverse effect on the unborn child.

The Chief Inspector of Prisons wants changes

The League claimed that as recently as May, there were 60 women pregnant prisoners.

In the short term, the league has called for improved quality of care and support for pregnant prisoners.

The Howard League's report echoes comments made by the Chief Inspector of Prisons, Sir David Ramsbotham. In June, he also said pregnant women should not be jailed. Sir David said a prison had too restrictive an environment for a new-born child.

He recommended a series of measures to improve the plight of women prisoners.

But others have warned against making pregnant women a special case. The former prisons minister of the Conservative government, Ann Widdecombe, warned that such treatment would soon lead to abuse of the system.