The Government's response to Coronavirus
Petitions Committee
Closed
Inquiry
As a result of the large numbers of petitions people have started on this issue, the Petitions Committee is questioning the Government about its response to the coronavirus to answer petitioner’s most common questions and concerns.
26
Recommendations
4
Conclusions
2
Reports
3
Oral sessions
29
Letters
3
Events
Activity timeline 40 events
29 Apr
2021
2021
29 Apr
2021
2021
1 Apr
2021
2021
13 Oct
2020
2020
24 Sep
2020
2020
24 Sep
2020
2020
16 Sep
2020
2020
9 Sep
2020
2020
20 Aug
2020
2020
4 Aug
2020
2020
29 Jul
2020
2020
13 Jul
2020
2020
Report published
Oral evidence sessions 3 sessions
11 Jun 2020
View on parliament.uk
Michelle Donelan MP · Department for Education
Paul Scully MP · Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
21 May 2020
View on parliament.uk
Alain Gregoire · Maternal Mental Health Alliance
Bobby Norris, petition creator
Dr Trudi Seneviratne OBE · Royal College of Psychiatrists
Josie Anderson · Bliss
Neil Leitch · Early Years Alliance
Sue Armstrong Brown · Adoption UK
7 May 2020
View on parliament.uk
Bethany Power, Petition signatory · Private citizen
Dr Cheryll Adams CBE FRSPH D(Nurs) MSc · Institute of Health Visiting
Dr Jo Grady · University and College Union
Emily Tredget · Happity
James Zammit-Garcia, Petition Creator
Jessie Zammit, Petition Creator
Professor Elizabeth Meins · University of York
Professor Julia Buckingham CBE · Universities UK
Sophie Quinn, Petition creator
Zamzam Ibrahim · National Union of Students
Reports 2 reports · click to expand
| Title | HC No. | Published | Items | Response |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Second Report - The impact of Covid-19 on university students | HC 527 | 13 Jul 2020 | 8 | Responded |
| First Report: The impact of Covid-19 on maternity and parental l… | HC 526 | 6 Jul 2020 | 22 | Responded |
Recommendations & Conclusions
10 results
2
Recommendation
Rejected
First Report: The impact of Covid-…
As a matter of urgency the Government should consider whether Maternity Allowance should be considered...
As a matter of urgency the Government should consider whether Maternity Allowance should be considered as earnings in the same way as Statutory Maternity Pay and should not lead to deductions from Universal Credit.
Government Response
The government rejects changing the treatment of Maternity Allowance within Universal Credit, explaining it is considered unearned income and thus deducted pound-for-pound, unlike Statutory Maternity Pay which is treated as earnings.
3
Recommendation
Rejected
First Report: The impact of Covid-…
Parental leave and pay are not unique in having different provisions for employed and self-employed...
Parental leave and pay are not unique in having different provisions for employed and self-employed people, and this is just one area of a complex benefit system. It is however apparent that many of the inequalities are not a reflection …
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Government Response
The government implicitly rejects equalising benefits for self-employed adoptive parents, explaining existing different provisions and discretionary local authority payments. For special guardians, it defers action, stating it has consulted on parental leave reforms and will respond in due course.
7
Recommendation
Rejected
First Report: The impact of Covid-…
In addition to the immediate financial consequences for pregnant women of being put on Statutory...
In addition to the immediate financial consequences for pregnant women of being put on Statutory Sick Pay or unpaid leave—often when they should have been suspended on full pay—in many cases the loss of income that results can also mean …
Read more
Government Response
The government rejects the recommendation to amend Statutory Maternity Pay calculations to disregard lower income periods from Statutory Sick Pay or unpaid leave, stating that while adjustments were made for furlough, SSP is not a new situation and there are no plans to change its treatment in SMP calculations.
9
Recommendation
Rejected
First Report: The impact of Covid-…
The Government’s decision to reject the request to extend maternity leave has been hugely disappointing...
The Government’s decision to reject the request to extend maternity leave has been hugely disappointing to the hundreds of thousands of people who have signed this petition. In these extraordinary circumstances, where the Government has taken exceptional action to support …
Read more
Government Response
The government rejects the recommendation to extend parental leave and pay, citing the significant cost to the Exchequer and the additional burden on businesses at a challenging time.
13
Recommendation
Rejected
First Report: The impact of Covid-…
Free dental care is an important benefit that most pregnant and new mothers have been...
Free dental care is an important benefit that most pregnant and new mothers have been unable to access as the result of the pandemic. The Government should extend maternity dentist provision for new and expectant mothers affected by the pandemic …
Read more
Government Response
The government rejects extending free maternity dental provision for new and expectant mothers, stating it has no plans to extend existing charge exemptions at this time, while noting routine dentistry has restarted.
15
Recommendation
Rejected
First Report: The impact of Covid-…
Adoptive parents and their children have faced uniquely challenging situations without the access to the...
Adoptive parents and their children have faced uniquely challenging situations without the access to the professional and informal support that they need. These children are among the most vulnerable in society. In the most serious situations, we’ve heard that the …
Read more
Government Response
The government rejected the recommendation to extend adoption leave and pay, stating that existing entitlements of 52 weeks leave and 39 weeks pay, along with other flexible working options, are already generous and sufficient for new parents.
16
Recommendation
Rejected
First Report: The impact of Covid-…
The Government’s response to this inquiry so far has not addressed the immediate situation faced...
The Government’s response to this inquiry so far has not addressed the immediate situation faced by self-employed adoptive parents as a result of Covid-19. A future review, although welcome, may not come in time for this cohort of parents and …
Read more
Government Response
The government rejects the recommendation to equalise benefits for self-employed adoptive parents, explaining that maternity entitlements have health and safety considerations for birth mothers that do not apply to adopters. It notes that local authorities can already consider discretionary, means-tested payments.
18
Recommendation
Rejected
First Report: The impact of Covid-…
We welcome the Government’s recognition that special neonatal leave and pay should be introduced for...
We welcome the Government’s recognition that special neonatal leave and pay should be introduced for all parents who find themselves in this situation. The Government plans to include provisions in its forthcoming Employment Bill to introduce this reform in 2023. …
Read more
Government Response
The government rejects piloting neonatal leave and pay for those affected by Covid-19, explaining that such a pilot would still require complex legislation and IT systems and would not be delivered any sooner than the planned full entitlement in 2023.
6
Recommendation
Rejected
Second Report - The impact of Covi…
The Government has put in place unprecedented financial support measures to respond to Covid-19, paying...
The Government has put in place unprecedented financial support measures to respond to Covid-19, paying the salaries of hundreds of thousands of employees nationally, and funding grants and loans for a huge number of businesses and industries. These are exceptional …
Read more
Government Response
The government rejects providing additional funding to universities for student refunds or reducing student loans as a reimbursement method. It reiterates that refunds are a matter for individual providers based on contractual arrangements and points to existing stabilisation packages for the sector.
7
Recommendation
Rejected
Second Report - The impact of Covi…
While it is too early to know what effect the Covid-19 outbreak will have on...
While it is too early to know what effect the Covid-19 outbreak will have on university courses in the next academic year, there will not be a return to business as usual. We hope that all universities will be able …
Read more
Government Response
The government confirms that any actions taken regarding student refunds or course repeats will apply to students in the 2020/21 academic year, thereby rejecting the recommendation for such arrangements to extend to students affected by COVID-19 in future academic years.
Correspondence 29 letters
29 Apr 2021
From committee
Letter to the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Children and Families relating to Parent and child group singing
Parliament page
29 Apr 2021
To committee
Letter from Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Children and Families relating to parent and child group singing
Parliament page
1 Apr 2021
From committee
Letter to the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Children and Families regarding guidance for early years and childcare providers
Parliament page
13 Oct 2020
To committee
Letter from the Minister for Small Business, Consumers & Labour Markets responding to the Committee's First Report: The impact of COVID-19 on maternity and parental leave.
Parliament page
24 Sep 2020
From committee
Letter to the Prime Minister regarding the impact of Covid-19 on maternity and parental leave
Parliament page
24 Sep 2020
From committee
Letter to the Minister for Small Business, Consumers and Labour Markets regarding the impact of Covid-19 on maternity and parental leave
Parliament page
20 Aug 2020
From committee
Letter to the Secretary of State for Education regarding student grading
Parliament page
4 Aug 2020
From committee
Letter to Minister for Small Business, Consumers and Labour Markets regarding maternity leave
Parliament page
27 May 2020
From committee
Letter to Huw Merriman MP - Transport Committee - Aviation petition
Parliament page
18 May 2020
To committee
Response from Oliver Dowden MP - BSL
Parliament page
18 May 2020
From committee
Letter to Oliver Dowden MP - BSL
Parliament page
24 Apr 2020
From committee
Letter to Oliver Dowden MP - BSL
Parliament page
23 Apr 2020
From committee
Letter to Select Committee Chairs - scrutiny of the Government’s response to the Coronavirus crisis
Parliament page
15 Apr 2020
To committee
Response from Matt Hancock MP - The Government's response to Coronavirus
Parliament page
14 Apr 2020
To committee
Response from Oliver Dowden MP - The Government's response to Coronavirus
Parliament page
9 Apr 2020
To committee
Response from George Eustice MP - The Government's response to Coronavirus
Parliament page
9 Apr 2020
To committee
Response from Justin Tomlinson MP - The Government's response to Coronavirus
Parliament page
9 Apr 2020
To committee
Response from Grant Shapps MP - The Government's response to Coronavirus
Parliament page
9 Apr 2020
To committee
Response from Robert Jenrick MP - The Government's response to Coronavirus
Parliament page
9 Apr 2020
To committee
Response from Rishi Sunak MP - The Government's response to Coronavirus
Parliament page
9 Apr 2020
To committee
Response from Nick Gibb MP - The Government's response to Coronavirus
Parliament page
30 Mar 2020
From committee
Letter to Grant Shapps MP - The Government's response to Coronavirus
Parliament page
30 Mar 2020
From committee
Letter to Matt Hancock MP - The Government's response to Coronavirus
Parliament page
30 Mar 2020
From committee
Letter to Thérèse Coffey MP - The Government's response to Coronavirus
Parliament page
30 Mar 2020
From committee
Letter to Oliver Dowden MP - The Government's response to Coronavirus
Parliament page
30 Mar 2020
From committee
Letter to Gavin Williamson MP - The Government's response to Coronavirus
Parliament page
30 Mar 2020
From committee
Letter to George Eustice MP - The Government's response to Coronavirus
Parliament page
30 Mar 2020
From committee
Letter to Alok Sharma MP and Rishi Sunak MP - The Government's response to Coronavirus
Parliament page
30 Mar 2020
From committee
Letter to Robert Jenrick MP - The Government's response to Coronavirus
Parliament page