Mike Penning calls for bereaved carers to continue to be able to claim ‘Carers Allowance’.

Mike Penning, MP for Hemel Hempstead, has joined other MPs to co-sponsors a House of Commons Early Day Motion calling for a change to carers allowance entitlement.

“Carers allowance is available to carers to replace earnings”, he said. “Under the current system, in the event that the carer loses their spouse, they stop receiving carers allowance and receive bereavement allowance. But bereavement allowance is intended to replace income that would have come from the deceased. This means that under the current system the carer loses out – as they now have no income to replace their own lost earnings.”

The Early Day Motion tabled in the House of Commons calls for this to be changed.