Kemi Badenoch, a contender in the Tory leadership race, has sparked controversy by describing maternity pay as “excessive” and suggesting mothers take more personal responsibility. Her comments triggered immediate backlash at the Conservative Party conference.
Kemi Badenoch has sparked outrage by branding maternity pay “excessive” and urging mothers to show “more personal responsibility'. It has triggered a mega backlash at the party's Birmingham conference - including criticism from her leadership rivals. As the Tory leadership contest burst into life, the Shadow Communities Secretary told Times Radio: 'Maternity pay varies depending on who you work for, but it is a function, where it's statutory maternity pay .
'We need to allow businesses, especially small businesses, to make more of their own decisions. The exact amount of maternity pay in my view is neither here nor there. 'We need to make sure that we are creating an environment where people can work and people can have more freedom to make their individual decisions.'Chase star reveals when he'll QUIT show after horror diagnosis Challenged on how this affects families who can’t afford to have a baby, she fired back: “We need to have more personal responsibility.A source from a rival camp told The Sun: 'Kemi's mad ideas are the only thing that can send our party's polling even lower.Ms Badenoch appeared to quickly row back following the backlash. She posted on X: 'Contrary to what some have said, I clearly said the burden of regulation on businesses had gone too far… of course I believe in maternity pay!' Her allies were also sent out to limit the damage, with a source in her camp accusing her rivals of misrepresenting her. They said: 'Infighting and internal conflicts helped take our party to an historic defeat. We need to be better, we need our politics to be better. 'Kemi obviously supports maternity pay and was making a case for lower regulation - something she always aimed for as business secretary. 'For other leadership campaigns to be seeking to use selective quotes from an interview to score political hits, shows they’re still wedded to the old politics and simply aren’t serious about getting back to governmen
Kemi Badenoch Tory Leadership Maternity Pay Politics Controversy
United Kingdom Latest News, United Kingdom Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Tory leader battle ramps up as favourite Kemi Badenoch vows 'renewal' while James Cleverly backs...Tory hopefuls are stepping up their campaigns with MPs set to whittle the field down from half a dozen to four over the next fortnight.
Read more »
Tory leader battle ramps up as favourite Kemi Badenoch vows 'renewal' while James Cleverly backs...The Tory leadership battle is gathering pace today as favourite Kemi Badenoch formally launches her bid. She captioned the post on X, 'I launch my renewal2030 campaign to be the next leader of our great Conservative Party.'
Read more »
Tory Leadership Hopeful Kemi Badenoch Declares She Is A 'Huge Fan' Of Elon MuskKate is a Senior Trends Reporter at HuffPost UK, covering the day's most compelling stories. She has worked in the national news since she became a qualified journalist and was previously a reporter with Express.co.uk
Read more »
Robert Jenrick ‘thinks he’s nailed on’ for Tory leadership finale as rival Kemi Badenoch launches campaign...Tory leadership frontrunner Kemi Badenoch campaigned to increase legal migration, bombshell video reveals
Read more »
Kemi Badenoch hailed ‘new Thatcher’ by rising star Tory backer Laura Trott as leadership race heats up...Tory leadership frontrunner Kemi Badenoch campaigned to increase legal migration, bombshell video reveals
Read more »
Kemi Badenoch accuses Labour government of being 'clueless, irresponsible and dishonest' as she...Tory leadership hopeful Robert Jenrick called for a 'new Conservative Party' during a leadership rally on the eve of Parliament's return from the summer break, urging the party to embrace change and address the challenges facing the party.
Read more »