'An £11 test could have saved our babies': Grieving mothers urge the Government to screen pregnant women for little-known bacteria that kills one newborn a WEEK

Shaheen McQuade (left), 25, of North Lanarkshire, Fiona Paddon, 40, of Greenwich, south London (centre),and and Natalie Russell (right), 32, of Edinburgh, all lost their babies as a result of Group B Streptococcus (GBS) infection. 

GBS, a common bacteria found in the vagina and bowel of around a fifth of women, is normally harmless to carriers. 

But it can have fatal consequences if passed from mother to baby. If detected early enough, mothers can be treated with intravenous antibiotics during childbirth. 

But unlike other countries, such as the US, Canada and France, there is no routine screening during pregnancy for GBS - despite a test costing the NHS just £11. 

Worse still, women are not even routinely informed about the danger GBS poses. 

Now, these grieving mothers want current guidelines revised and have launched petitions calling on both Westminster and Holyrood to introduce national screening for the bacteria, garnering hundreds of thousands of signatures in support of their demands. 

Urging health chiefs to test all mothers-to-be for the bacteria, Mrs Paddon said: 'To be told your beautiful baby has to die is a pain you cannot imagine until you've experienced it. 

We know GBS exists, and we know the risks it poses to babies. Ignoring it by not screening isn't the answer.'