Tom Morrison urges regulation after BBC Baby Sleep inquiry
The Lullaby Trust and Liberal Democrat MP Tom Morrison have written to Health Secretary Wes Streeting calling for urgent regulation of baby sleep advice after a investigation found self-described experts giving parents guidance that contradicts NHS safer-sleep rules. Streeting said dangerous misinformation dressed up as expert advice must stop.
The letter comes as the said its secret filming exposed two prominent figures in the infant-sleep sector giving advice that could put babies at risk of serious harm and even death according to medical professionals. Morrison said he must ask what more can be done to legislate against life-threatening advice when parents are searching for help in the vulnerable beginnings of parenthood.
Wes Streeting and NHS guidance
Streeting told parents to rely only on trusted, evidence-based information such as the NHS Best Start in Life website. His response came after the investigation found some self-described sleep experts giving advice to new parents that goes against long-established safer-sleep NHS guidance.
The issue goes beyond one bad recommendation. The facts provided say there is currently no oversight or regulation of the infant-sleep industry, and that anyone can sell sleep advice to parents regardless of experience or qualifications.
Tom Morrison and The Lullaby Trust
Morrison, the Liberal Democrat MP for Cheadle, joined The Lullaby Trust in warning that government regulation is urgently needed to stop individuals from giving parents sleep advice that is contrary to established NHS and real expert guidance. Their letter followed the investigation and pushed the argument toward legislation rather than voluntary standards.
That call lands alongside a separate legal change already set out by the Department for Health and Social Care in March, when it said the law would be changed to limit who was allowed to call themselves a nurse. Under that planned change, people working in a hands-on capacity as night nannies would no longer be able to operate as maternity nurses.
Madison Bruce Smith family statement
The strongest warning in the file comes from the family of Madison Bruce Smith, Steve Bruce's four-month-old grandson. After an inquest into his death, the family said no parent should ever have to question whether the person they have trusted to care for their baby is truly qualified, and added that clear standards and accountability are essential, because so many children's lives depend on it.
The family want all paid care for babies and infants to be properly regulated with mandatory training and strict adherence to national safer-sleep guidelines. Their statement ties the wider policy debate to a specific loss, and it leaves pressure on ministers to decide whether the current nurse-related change is enough or whether broader rules are needed for the rest of the infant-sleep market.
