Nova Scotia NDP Leader Gary Burrill says if he's elected, his government will invest $6 million over four years to give more expectant mothers access to midwives.

The investment would allow the province to double its number of practising midwives and create a training program for people who want to become midwives, the NDP said in a news release on Mother's Day.

"We know more and more families in Nova Scotia are looking for a midwife to be part of their pregnancy and delivery," Burrill said in the statement.

Right now, Nova Scotia has 10 working midwives, the NDP said, including six in the Halifax area, two on the South Shore and two in Antigonish.

A 2011 external report prepared for the then-NDP government on the state of Nova Scotia's midwifery program recommended that the province have 20 full-time midwives by the end of the 2017 fiscal year.

"In our view midwifery in NS cannot long survive in its present state," the report said.

The NDP is promising $6 million over four years to improve access to midwifery. (CBC)

"If nothing is done, the profession will collapse and the benefits of regulation will not be realized. There are too few members to meet increasing requests for midwifery care, provide services safely and effectively, and attend to the complexity of regulatory and professional association activities that are required of a newly regulated profession."

McNeil told reporters on Sunday that midwifery would be part of an overall health service plan under his government, but he could not provide details about that plan.