The number of maternity deaths in Britain has risen in the past three years, figures are expected to reveal.
Increasing levels of obesity and an influx of immigrant mothers who fail to attend antenatal appointments are behind the trend, it is claimed.
A report, due to be published on 4the December, is understood to have found that more mothers died during childbirth in 2003-05 than in 2000-02, when the figure was 261.
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Factors leading to the increase include record rates of obesity among pregnant women and the trend to have babies later in life, both of which create more risks.
A rise in the number of immigrant women having children in Britain may also influence the increase. They are more likely to have health problems that lead to complications in childbirth, and are less likely to attend antenatal appointments.
