The Women and Equalities Committee said there was a “litany of shortcomings” in the current parental leave system, including “damaging” low statutory pay across the board, inadequate leave periods for fathers and other parents, the exclusion of many working parents and guardians, design flaws and unnecessary complexity.
Labour MP Sarah Owen, who chairs the committee, said the system was “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,” she added.
‘Parents deserve better’
Owen’s comments came after the publication of a report last month found that four in 10 mothers said they couldn’t take the time they needed after the birth of their child, with mothers concerned about finances returning to work eight weeks earlier than those without money worries. Meanwhile, seven in 10 fathers who didn’t take their full two weeks of statutory paternity leave said finances were the reason and one in five fathers had no entitlement to parental leave at all.
Anna Whitehouse, founder of parental portal Mother Pukka, said: “Right now, the system is failing dads who want to show up for their families, and it’s failing mums who are left to carry the load alone or forced back to work before they’re ready.
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“It doesn’t have to be this way. Parents deserve better – and so do our children. We need a parental leave system that values both parents from day one, and gives families the support they need to thrive.”
Paternity pay is half of living wage
At present, fathers are entitled to £187.18 per week or 90% of their average earnings, whichever is lower when they go on paternity leave. This is less than 50% of the National Living Wage, and fathers are ineligible for statutory paternity leave if they are self-employed or earn less than £123 per week.
The committee wants to raise this to 90% of wages and paternity leave to six weeks, as well as helping those who are kinship carers and single parents to take more time off in a financially secure environment.
The report stated that we should look at the parental leave rules in other countries, which are more generous and provide extra support for multiple births. It added that the Government should also address cultural barriers to men taking paternity leave.
“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,” Owen said.
