Written questions

Maternity Allowance and Maternity Pay

Commons · Question 39740 · Tabled 19 Mar 2025 · Department for Work and Pensions · Official record

Answered 28 Mar 2025

Question

Asked by Martin Wrigley

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if her Department will make an assessment of the potential impact of the change in the weekly rate of Statuary Maternity Pay and Maternity Allowance from April 2025 on child poverty in Devon.

Answer

Answered by Alison McGovern, 28 Mar 2025

Maternity pay is primarily a health and safety provisions for pregnant working women. It is not, and has never been, intended to replace a woman's earnings completely, nor is it intended to help with the cost of having a baby. Rather it provides a measure...