Lidia Thorpe has introduced a private senator’s bill seeking to prohibit the shackling of women during labour, childbirth and immediately after birth in Australian prisons.
The Crimes Amendment (Prohibiting Shackling During Childbirth) Bill 2026 was introduced in the Senate on 18 August and is currently before the Senate. The bill has been referred to the Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee, with a report due on 7 October 2026. Parliament of Australia
The move comes as former prisoners, legal advocates and health organisations tell a federal inquiry that restraints are still being used in circumstances where state and territory rules generally say they should be a last resort or used only when absolutely necessary.
Thorpe has described the practice as unacceptable during childbirth. Her bill would remove the existing exemptions that can allow restraints to be used where authorities identify a compelling safety risk.
One case raised in the Senate involved Heather Calgaret, a Yamatji, Noongar, Wongi and Pitjantjatjara woman who gave birth while shackled to a hospital bed in Victoria in 2019. According to evidence cited by Thorpe, Calgaret’s daughter was removed days after the birth. Calgaret died in custody in 2021.
The Guardian reported that a 2025 coronial finding described the removal of Calgaret’s daughter as “pivotal” to her death. The circumstances of her death involved the administration of buprenorphine, and the coroner’s findings are distinct from claims about shackling during childbirth.
Advocacy organisations told the inquiry that restraints during labour can interfere with movement, medical care and a mother’s ability to hold her newborn. The Australian College of Midwives has also opposed shackling during childbirth, describing it as unsafe and unnecessary.
The National Justice Project told the inquiry that shackling during labour and childbirth breaches established human rights standards. The United Nations Bangkok Rules state that instruments of restraint should not be used on women during labour, birth or immediately after birth.
Australian correctional guidelines also state that restraints should not be used during and immediately following childbirth unless an individualised assessment identifies a compelling safety risk that cannot be managed by other means. State and territory rules vary in their wording.
The issue also intersects with the health needs of women in custody. The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare reported in 2026 that 86{0931a9b6576c5d87fe846c236d3725957ace4ff7894c2ecd00b9029ccfe6a5f9} of female prison entrants who took part in its 2025 survey said they had been pregnant at some point in their lives.
If passed, Thorpe’s bill would establish a federal prohibition intended to remove the existing exceptions for shackling during childbirth. The legislation remains before the Senate and has not yet become law.
Source: The Guardian and Parliament of Australia.
