Response to consultation on choice for families: additional paternity leave and pay

The Commission responded to the consultation from BIS on Choice for Families: Additional Paternity Leave and Pay that was open between September and November 2009.

Response summary

The Commission broadly welcomes the Government’s proposals for the draft regulations on Additional Paternity Leave (APL). The Commission believes that implementation of APL would provide more choice for parents in childcare responsibilities and a more equitable sharing of leave entitlements. The proposals are in the right direction of travel of more leave for fathers and to support more fathers’ involvement in caring.

The role of fathers as care-givers within the family has received increasing attention from policy and research in the last decade. While there have been huge changes in women’s participation in employment over the last 30 years, men’s contribution to childcare has not increased at the same rate. In most cases, women continue to shoulder the responsibility for childcare, even in households where both parents work full-time.

However, evidence shows that there is a strong desire of many fathers to spend more time with their children but that this can be frustrated by long working hours, inflexible workplaces and outdated family leave policy.

Download the full repsonse here (Word)

Last Updated: 08 Dec 2009