Sinn Féin MLA Colm Gildernew has said urgent action is needed to tackle infant mortality rates. 

Colm Gildernew said: 

“In the north we have the highest levels of infant mortality across these islands. 

“While I welcome the news that infant mortality is decreasing overall, it is deeply concerning that our progress in tackling this challenge lags considerably behind the progress made everywhere else across these islands. 

“Infant mortality remains considerably higher in the more deprived communities across the north.

“According to the Public Health Agency (PHA), an infant under the age of one is 30 per cent more likely to die than an infant in a more affluent community.

“At the root of this disparity between the most and least deprived communities, is unrelenting poverty and a lack of public services worsened by years of Tory austerity.

“If we are to make any meaningful progress in giving every child an equal chance to survive and to flourish then we must work to tackle poverty and inequality across the north.”