New dads should get six weeks paid paternity leave, say MPs
Dads in the UK get an unfair deal compared to other parts of Europe
MPs have called upon the government to give a greater number of, and better paid paternity leaves to new dads
(Image: Getty Images )
A multi party committee at Westminster has called upon the UK government to increase amount of paid leave given to new fathers.
A new report by the Women and Equalities Committee (WEC) has said that the current system of parental leave in the UK has 'fundamental failings'. It added that they government's proposed 'full review' must address the failings head on.
Chair of the committee, Labour MP Sarah Owen said: 'It's clear from the evidence in our Committee's report that the UK's parental leave system is in urgent need of an overhaul to fit with the reality of working parents' lives. This must start with longer and better paid paternity leave.
The current system of paternity leave has been labelled 'unequal'
(Image: Getty Images )
'It's essential the Government's proposed review addresses the system's fundamental failings, including low statutory pay, inadequate leave periods for fathers and others, exclusion of many working parents and guardians, plus design flaws and unnecessary complexity in the Shared Parental Leave scheme.'
According to the report, the UK has 'one of the most gender unequal statutory parental leave systems in the developed world.' For our free daily briefing on the biggest issues facing the nation, sign up to the Wales Matters newsletter here
Article continues below
Currently, new mothers can get 90% of their usual pay for the first six weeks after they have a baby. There is no maximum limit on this.
After this time passes, new mothers will either get £187.18 per week or 90% of their usual pay — whichever is lowest for the next 33 weeks.
However, new fathers are only entitled to take up to two weeks of paid paternity leave after their baby is born and can either get £187.18 per week or 90% of their usual pay — whichever is lowest. This falls short of the real living wage.
The report says: 'It is widely recognised that this deeply gender unequal system reflects increasingly outdated gender norms around caring for babies and young children within two-parent families.
'The design of the system reflects and entrenches the norm that mothers overwhelmingly bear these responsibilities.'
The MPs found that the perpetuation of these norms is a key factor in 'widespread pregnancy and maternity discrimination' by employers and is also a key driver of 'motherhood penalty'. They argue, that this in turn drives up the UK's 'persistent and relatively large' gender pay gap.
The UK also performs poorly when compared to other countries in the developed world.
For example, the UK's maximum statutory paternity leave of weeks, is comparable to the least least generous paternity leave duration in European Union countries, where two weeks of paternity leave is the legal minimum and many member states have much more generous offers.
Th UK's paternity leave entitlement is also among lowest across the 38 countries in Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
MP Sarah Owen said: 'The UK's parental leave system has fallen far behind most comparable countries, and we now have one of the worst statutory leave offers for fathers and other parents in the developed world.
'Countries which provide a substantial period of well-paid leave for all parents have on average a four-percentage point smaller gender pay gap than those that allow less than six weeks.'
The WEC has called upon the UK government to get the paternity pay on par with the maternity pay given in the first six weeks, which is 90% of the person's average earnings.
It has also asked the government to raise statutory pay in a phased manner for all parents so they receive 80% or more of their average earnings, or the real living wage.
The committee has urged government to improve paternity leave and has suggested raising it incrementally taking into lessons from countries like Spain — where new fathers can avail 16 weeks of paternity leave at full pay. WEC said that the government should set out a 'pathway' to increasing paid paternity leave to six weeks.
The report has also urges the government to introduce reforms into the Shared Parental Leave (SPL) increase access to 'as broad a range of working parents as possible' — this would include the self-employed and those on lower incomes.
Article continues below
MP Sarah Owen said: 'Ministers must commit to meaningful reforms in the medium term, with a view to going further towards a more gender equal parental leave system. Tinkering around the edges of a broken system will let down working parents.
'While much-needed substantial change to our paid parental leave system will require considerable financial investment, this would be outweighed by wider societal and economic benefits.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Wales Online
15 hours ago
- Wales Online
Hundreds of Welsh high rises requiring fire safety works still awaiting planning decisions
Hundreds of Welsh high rises requiring fire safety works still awaiting planning decisions The Welsh Government's latest update on work to rectify high rise buildings affected by fire safety issues shows that 47% are awaiting planning decisions A number of high rises across Wales needing fire safety work are still awaiting planning decisions (Image: steved_np3/Getty) Hundreds of high-rise buildings which need to be made fire safe in Wales are still awaiting planning decisions. The Welsh Government's latest update on its building safety programme, published in July, shows that of the 461 buildings in it, 43% have either been completed or have works ongoing on them. It also shows 47% of the buildings are 'in the planning stages', with the remaining 10% either not requiring works or remediation needs are yet to be identified. The Welsh Government's cabinet secretary for housing and local government, Jayne Bryant, said in the latest building safety programme update that she met with developers to discuss their progress and performance. For our free daily briefing on the biggest issues facing the nation, sign up to the Wales Matters newsletter here . Ms Bryant also said she was pleased to introduce the Welsh Government's Building Safety (Wales) Bill to the Senedd in July, which aims to clearly establish who is responsible for fixing high-rise buildings with fire defects. However, the Local Democracy Reporting Service understands campaigners at a recent meeting with the cabinet minister remained critical of the lack of progress being made to remediate peoples' homes. All large developers in Wales have signed a Welsh Government building safety pact requiring them to make all buildings of 11m or more in height fire-safe. Article continues below The building safety pact was established after the Grenfell fire of 2017 and aims to avoid a repeat of the disaster. Nearly three years on from the establishment of the pact, residents and politicians continue their calls for pressure to be put on developers. In Cardiff, where most of these buildings are located, councillors voted in favour of a motion in February calling on the Welsh Government to be firmer with private developers and make sure work progresses without delay. Presenting her motion at the time, Labour councillor for Butetown, Cllr Helen Gunter, said she had heard examples of families who were 'trapped' in apartments they couldn't sell. She added: 'Another example of elderly residents who have felt the need to move out of their building while awaiting remediation work because they worry and have anxiety about their ability to leave the building quickly in the event of an emergency. 'They have no idea of timescales so can't rent out and don't want to sell the home they love but as a consequence have fallen into the category for increased council tax bills.' High-rise building safety campaigners in Wales also want developers to be made responsible for more than just fire safety defects. Some high-rise complexes, like Celestia in Cardiff, have a number of other issues like algae, damp and rendering coming off the side of buildings. People living in affected flats have been fighting for years to get developers to pay for these works. Article continues below
Scotsman
a day ago
- Scotsman
Property Tax: Rachel Reeves eyes new Stamp Duty shake-up
New plans could soon mean selling your home leaves you with less in your pocket 🏡 Sign up to the weekly Cost Of Living newsletter. Saving tips, deals and money hacks. Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Chancellor Rachel Reeves is considering replacing stamp duty with a new tax on home sales Homeowners selling properties worth over £500,000 could face a levy, instead of buyers paying upfront stamp duty A £600,000 home sale could mean a tax bill of around £3,240; £1.2m could cost about £8,500 The plan is aimed at easing costs for buyers, particularly first-time buyers, and could pave the way for wider council tax reform Any changes would be announced in the Autumn Budget, expected in late October or early November 2025 Selling your home could soon come with a new tax bill attached, as the Treasury weighs up a radical overhaul of the way property is taxed in the UK. According to reports, Chancellor Rachel Reeves is 'looking at' scrapping the existing stamp duty system – where buyers pay a levy when purchasing property – and replacing it with a tax on sellers of homes worth more than £500,000. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Currently, stamp duty kicks in on properties costing over £125,000, with buyers footing the bill Under the proposals being considered, this responsibility would shift to homeowners, who would pay a government-set rate when they sell up – but only if their property is worth above the £500,000 threshold. Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves during a visit to Studio Ulster on August 12, 2025 in Belfast, Northern Ireland (Photo: Oliver McVeigh - Pool/Getty Images) | Getty Images What could change? Details remain under discussion, but one model floated by former government adviser Tim Leunig would see a levy of 0.54% on the sale price of homes over £500,000, plus a 0.278% supplement on values above £1 million. That would mean: Selling a £600,000 home could cost you around £3,240. A £1.2 million sale could trigger a tax bill of around £8,500. This would replace stamp duty for buyers of owner-occupied homes. Second homes and buy-to-lets, however, may remain under a separate system. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad If Rachel Reeves pushes ahead, homeowners and buyers in England and NI would be directly affected. But Scotland uses the Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT), and so changes wouldn't apply there unless the Scottish Government decided to introduce similar reforms to LBTT. Why is this being considered? The move would aim to make it easier for people to buy their first home, by removing one of the biggest upfront costs of moving. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad It could also create a model for broader reform, with the possibility of replacing council tax with a property-based levy in the medium term. The Treasury insists no decision has yet been made. A spokesperson said the focus remains on 'growing the economy' and keeping taxes on working people 'as low as possible', pointing to existing pledges not to raise income tax, national insurance, or VAT. What does it mean for you? If you own a home worth more than £500,000, this change could mean factoring in a tax bill when you eventually sell. While the rate looks lower than stamp duty on equivalent purchases today, sellers may feel the sting of losing a chunk of their proceeds. Buyers, meanwhile, could find moving less expensive, especially first-timers, who often struggle to save for both a deposit and stamp duty. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad When is the Autumn Budget? Reeves is expected to outline any concrete tax changes at a future Budget. The Autumn Budget 2025 has not been officially scheduled yet, but following tradition, it is most likely to be delivered in late October or early November 2025. It is broadly expected to fall between October 28 and November 4. For now, homeowners and buyers alike will be watching closely, as this shift could reshape one of the biggest financial transactions of our lives.
Wales Online
a day ago
- Wales Online
New asylum seeker dispersal centre in market town to house up to 35 people
New asylum seeker dispersal centre in market town to house up to 35 people The local MP said speculation about the centre had caused 'confusion and alarm' within the community The Ambrose Centre in Mold town centre is being prepared for use by the Home Office for people whose asylum claims are being considered (Image: Google) A new asylum seeker dispersal centre in Flintshire will have capacity for as many as 35 individuals, according to an MP. The facility, located in Mold, has split public opinion within the market town. Speculation had been widespread that approximately 100 people might be accommodated in apartments situated above High Street retail premises in Mold. Flintshire Council has acknowledged that the Ambrose Centre flats were being prepared for Home Office use for people whose asylum claims were being considered. The council stressed that, like Mold Town Council, it had not been consulted regarding the matter. The local authority said the dispersal facility would be managed by Clearsprings Ready Homes, a private company contracted by the Home Office to supply asylum seeker housing throughout Wales and southern England, reports NorthWalesLive. Last year the firm's owner, Graham King appeared on the Sunday Times rich list with an estimated wealth of £750m. He has earned the nickname 'The Asylum King'. Dispersal centres accommodate asylum claimants whilst their applications are assessed. If approved the local authority relocates them to dispersal housing, which can include self-contained properties or houses of multiple occupancy. Article continues below Recognising the matter was generating "confusion and alarm" within the community Clwyd East Labour MP Becky Gittins requested additional details from the Home Office. She said the Mold centre was designated specifically for families rather than single people. A maximum of 35 individuals will be spread among nine apartments at the Ambrose Centre. "Currently there are no families present," she wrote in an open letter posted on social media. "Nor are there any plans to place families at the centre although this can change at short notice." While the majority of asylum seekers are housed in London and the southeast of England there has been a shift towards distributing claimants more uniformly across the country. For our free daily briefing on the biggest issues facing the nation sign up to the Wales Matters newsletter here . Data from the Migration Observatory think-tank shows Flintshire sits in the middle for asylum seeker numbers being housed in north Wales. The statistics up to March 31 are outlined below. Wrexham: 109 asylum seekers (eight per 10,000 residents) Denbighshire: 52 asylum seekers (five per 10,000 residents) Gwynedd: 45 asylum seekers (four per 10,000 residents) Flintshire: 36 asylum seekers (two per 10,000 residents) Anglesey: 15 asylum seekers (two per 10,000 residents) Conwy: 21 asylum seekers (one per 10,000 residents) Powys: Five asylum seekers (zero per 10,000 residents) Ceredigion: Zero asylum seekers (zero per 10,000 residents) In contrast Halton Council in Cheshire accommodates 867 asylum claimants, equivalent to 65 per 10,000 residents. Ms Gittins, who was elected in 2024, said: "It is right and appropriate that asylum seekers are fairly spread across the country while their claims are being assessed. "As such it is right we seek to reduce the reliance on hotels as their usage is not only hugely expensive but can also place an unsustainable burden on specific communities, as was seen locally with the rejected proposal to place hundreds of asylum seekers at Northop Hall Country House Hotel. "The number of asylum hotels has fallen from over 400 in 2023 to under 210 today and we want to end their usage by the end of the parliament." Having grown up in Bagillt and attended Alun School, Mold, Ms Gittins said she knows the area well. "I know what a welcoming, inclusive community it is and the support it has provided to refugees in recent years. "People have every right to be angry about the chaotic situation we inherited and to hold me to account as your MP for our success in addressing these issues. Article continues below "But I ask that we treat each other, including potentially vulnerable asylum seekers, with the kindness and humanity that has always been such a hallmark of the community in Mold."
