Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of compensating people who were unable to claim child benefit due to delays in receiving their child's birth certificate as a result of the covid-19 outbreak.

The Government announced on 7 April 2020 that, as General Register Offices were closed or operating at a reduced capacity during the COVID-19 outbreak, HM Revenue and Customs would allow parents to claim Child Benefit for their newborns without having to register their child’s birth first, to ensure they did not miss out on Child Benefit payments. Child Benefit can be backdated for up to three months.

The press release announcing these measures is at:

www.gov.uk/government/news/dont-miss-out-claim-child-benefit-by-phone-or-post-hmrc-tells-new-parents