A coronial inquiry into the deaths of three newborns in homebirths has prompted a push for heavy punishments to be created for unregistered midwives, which could include jail time.

Plans for legislative change are underway which would make it illegal to provide birth services in South Australia without full medical accreditation. SA Health Minister Jack Snelling said anyone found operating or offering their services as a midwife would be fined up to $30,000 or imprisoned for a year.

Mr Snelling says it is not a move against homebirthing: “This is not about denying women a choice about where they give birth. It is a way to guarantee that whether a woman chooses to deliver in a hospital or at home, they are provided with safe and appropriate care by a registered, qualified professional,” he explained.

“This Government won't compromise when it comes to the safety of mothers and their babies and what the current legislation doesn't prevent is someone doing what a midwife would do at a birth, even though that person is not a doctor or a registered midwife,” he said.

The South Australian Government says that a fully comprehensive service including providing the best advice to mothers is only possible through registered practitioners. There will of course be provisions such as in an emergency situation; it will not be illegal to give a pregnant person assistance.

Elizabeth Dabars from the Nursing and Midwifery Federation says the group welcomes the move: “Regulation really is essential to ensure people meet appropriate educational, practice, conduct and ethical standards and we believe regulation is in fact absolutely essential for those reasons,” she said.

The Health Minister says the state does not mind cutting its own path: “It was going to take, you know, potentially years to get national agreement on this issue so South Australia's now going it alone,” Mr Snelling said.