Maternity inquiry chair named in government U-turn
The health secretary has made a U-turn over who will lead an independent inquiry into "repeated maternity failures" at an NHS trust.
Wes Streeting has appointed Donna Ockenden, following a campaign by bereaved and harmed families, to lead the review into maternity and neonatal services at Leeds Teaching Hospitals (LTH) NHS Trust.
Ockenden, a senior midwife, is currently leading the maternity review at Nottingham, which is the largest of its kind, examining about 2,500 cases of harm to mothers and babies.
In January 2025 a BBC investigation revealed the deaths of at least 56 babies and two mothers at the Leeds trust over the past five years may have been prevented.
Streeting first announced the inquiry into the West Yorkshire trust in October 2025, saying it was required to understand what had "gone so catastrophically wrong" at the maternity units at Leeds General Infirmary and St James's University Hospital.
Days later in a BBC radio interview, Streeting announced that Ockenden would not be the chair of the Leeds review.
In February, families and MPs urged Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer to "intervene and appoint" the senior midwife immediately to head the Leeds inquiry.
Amarjit Matharoo, whose daughter Asees was stillborn in January 2024, said it "has been a long, drawn-out, and emotionally draining process to get the assurances that this investigation will be handled with the appropriate methodology and care that it needs".
Matharoo said they were "grateful that Wes Streeting has listened carefully" and felt "very lucky" to have Ockenden appointed.
Streeting thanked families for "their openness in recent discussions" and said he was "delighted to appoint someone so trusted" by bereaved and harmed families.
Source: BBC News, 10 March 2026