Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 26 February 2026
38. Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Social Protection the number of men who applied for paternity benefit, and the number of women who applied for maternity benefit, in the past three years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14192/26]
View answerMy Department does not collate statistics on claim processing activity by characteristics such as gender, and this information is not readily available. Statistics in respect of applications are maintained for schemes as whole. In January 2026 there were 4,328 applications for Maternity Benefit and 3,135 registrations for Paternity Benefit.
The table below details the number of applications in the past three years 2023-2025 :
|
Scheme |
Maternity Benefit |
Paternity Benefit |
|
2023 |
43,253 |
29,177 |
|
2024 |
42,434 |
29,751 |
|
2025 |
42,768 |
30,198 |
