Maternity Allowance

(asked on 7th February 2022) - View Source

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of changes since 2010 in the relative value of the standard weekly rate of Maternity Allowance compared to (a) the adult rate of the National Living Wage and (b) women's median weekly earnings.


Answered by
Guy Opperman Portrait
Guy Opperman
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
This question was answered on 15th February 2022

No assessment has been made.

Maternity Allowance (MA) is not intended to replace a woman's earnings completely. Instead, it provides a measure of financial security to help pregnant working women take time off work for a reasonable period around the expected date of birth, to protect their own health and wellbeing and that of their baby. MA is a benefit paid by the State, which is treated as unearned income.

Reticulating Splines