Labour MP who is pregnant threatens legal proceedings against government if maternity leave plans aren’t extended to all MPs

'The message parliament sends if we only offer that to women at the top is that somehow maternity leave is a benefit like a company car' says Stella Creasy

Ministers have proposed news measures which will allow senior female politicians in the UK to take maternity leave without having to leave their jobs but the proposal for six months’ paid maternity leave only applies to cabinet ministers (PA Wire)

Labour MP Stella Creasy has threatened to launch legal proceedings against the government if they do not extend current maternity leave plans to all MPs.

Ministers have proposed news measures which will allow senior female politicians in the UK to take maternity leave without having to resign from their jobs. However the proposal for six months’ paid time off only applies to cabinet ministers.

The Ministerial and other Maternity Allowances Bill will be voted on in the House of Commons on Thursday - with the Labour Party not intending to oppose the legislation.

Newly proposed reforms were sparked by Suella Braverman, the attorney general, who would have been forced to step down from her cabinet role if she needed to take time off work after giving birth under the present system.

The new laws ensure Ms Braverman, whose baby is due to be born in a few weeks, is able to take six months maternity leave on full pay and return to her cabinet position after her maternity leave ends.

But Ms Creasy, who has announced she is pregnant with her second child, has called for all MPs to be entitled take advantage of the newly suggested rules.

The Labour and Co-operative MP for Walthamstow, who has campaigned for improved maternity rights for MPs, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: “I think every woman should be able to have paid maternity cover, proper cover - it's not just about being paid, it's that somebody else will be doing that job - so Suella Braverman will be able to take proper leave with her child.

“My concern is that the message parliament sends if we only offer that to women at the top is that somehow maternity leave is a benefit like a company car rather than something that every woman should have.”

Ms Creasy, the first ever MP to be granted locum maternity leave cover, said she had been told by lawyers the current legislation is discriminatory due to only helping top ministers.

She said: “I am very prepared to go to court over this, because it is a form of direct discrimination... as a backbencher, none of these provisions will apply to myself, it's still very unclear what I can tell my constituents they can get in terms of cover”.

Her comments come as a pregnant Labour MP said she is frightened about taking informal maternity leave and fears it will be politically “used against” her.

Feryal Clark, MP for Enfield North, told the Commons on Thursday: “For me this bill is also very personal. As you know I am both an expectant first-time mother and a first-time MP.”

The politician added: “As an MP - with all the vast opportunity and privilege that affords me - I am scared. I am scared about taking informal maternity leave when my baby arrives in two months. It is informal as there is no formalised maternity leave for backbench MPs.

“I'm scared that it will be used against me politically and most depressing of all I'm scared that beneath the warm words of 'good luck' and 'congratulations' some members will take a dim view of my taking of maternity leave at all.”

Her comments come as a dozen organisations, including leading gender equality organisations, Fawcett Society, Pregnant Then Screwed, and Women’s Budget Group, signed a statement warning the current proposals will create a “two-tier system of maternity and paternity rights”.

Helen Pankhurst, the convenor of Centenary Action Group, who spearheaded the statement, said: “The government’s response to Covid-19 has lacked a gendered perspective, and up and down the country we have seen the costs of this myopia.

“Meanwhile, arcane and anti-social parliamentary working practices, including the glacially slow recognition of the need for parental leave, remain major barriers to women’s involvement in political life. Parliament must be brought into the 21st century."

The campaigner, who is the granddaughter of famous Suffragette leader Sylvia Pankhurst, added: “Instead of doing the right thing for just those at the top of politics, the government must do the right thing for all.”

The legislation, which has the backing of Boris Johnson, is due to come before the House of Lords to be debated on 22 February.

While Frances Scott, founder and director of 50:50 Parliament, a cross-party campaign to reach gender equality in Westminster, said: “Parenting is a crucial role and joint responsibility. Parliament needs to be leading the way on this. Making provision for proper parenting leave, allowing both parents to participate equally during the early months, is just the start.”

A UK government spokesperson said: "The government is only responsible for ministerial salaries – IPSA which is independent of both government and parliament has responsibility for determining MPs salaries.

"Of course, the PM would urge them to look very closely at the issues that have been raised by MPs and determine what more support – such as temporary staffing - can be provided"