Clare Daly (Dublin North, Socialist Party)
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Question 106: To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality if he will implement procedures that require every maternal death, regardless of circumstance, to be submitted to a coroner's inquest [14007/11]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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The requirement to report a death to a coroner and whether to subsequently conduct an inquest is set out in sections 17 and 18 of the Coroners Act 1962. Under Coroners' Rules of Practice, as outlined on the Coroners website www.coroners.ie, maternal deaths relating to childbirth are required to be reported to the coroner. The Coroners Bill 2007, confirms this by providing, inter-alia, in the Third Schedule on Deaths Reportable to Coroner, for the reporting of "any maternal death that occurs during or following pregnancy (up to a period of six weeks post-partum) or that might be related to pregnancy".

Fortunately, maternal deaths are exceptionally rare and this State has one of the lowest maternal mortality rates in the world. However, where such deaths occur, they are reported to a coroner and an autopsy would normally be held. It is then a matter for the coroner to decide, having regard to the circumstances of the maternal death, whether an inquest is necessary to determine the circumstances. There may be cases where an inquest would be unnecessary and leaving it to the discretion of the coroner is, therefore, considered to be the most appropriate public policy position.