Pregnant women are being kept in jail despite the risk to their lives – and their babies

The Ministry of Justice is putting the health of very young children in jeopardy and forcing a wedge between incarcerated mothers and their children living on the outside, says Louise Tickle

Despite promises, women who are pregnant or with young children have not been released from UK prisons (Getty)

Amid the thousands of desperately sad stories about people dying from Covid-19, those where pregnant women have lost their lives prompt an added sense of grief.

These particular deaths mean babies will never feel the warmth of their mother’s skin, never blossom under her encouragement, never feel the fierceness of her love. The survival – so far – of these women's newborn babies is a blessing, but the impact of losing their mothers will inevitably be lifelong.

Given it is obvious that prisons are environments where the virus can spread rapidly, why, therefore, have only 17 pregnant women in custody been released?