Dads' Parental Leave

Employment Minister Justin Madders joined fellow MPs, and hundreds of fathers across the country, in supporting the first national Dads’ Coffee Morning.

The MP for Ellesmere Port and Bromborough met with dads and non-birthing parents to mark the 22nd anniversary of Labour's introduction of Statutory Paternity Leave.

Research from The Dad Shift shows the policy has benefited four million babies, fathers and families since its introduction in April 2003, making it a landmark achievement of the previous Labour government.

While groundbreaking when introduced, the UK's paternity leave has not been improved since and is now one of the worst in Europe, with just two weeks available at less than half the minimum wage.

The Labour Government has committed to making paternity leave a day-one right of employment and are reviewing parental leave this summer, with Mr Madders the minister who will lead the review.

Meeting at Theatre Porto in Ellesmere Port, the group discussed pressures on new dads, bringing up children in the constituency, and what the Government can do to support them. The discussions from the 35 events taking place are expected to feed into Labour’s forthcoming review of parental leave in the summer, as well as other forums such as the forthcoming consultation on the Men’s Health Strategy announced by Wes Streeting MP, Secretary of State for Health and Social Care. It will start in June.

The meet-up was held in partnership with The Dad Shift campaign group to mark the introduction of Statutory Paternity Leave (SPL) by the last Labour government 22 years ago, as research from The Dad Shift shows more than four million babies have since benefitted from the policy to date.

In 2015 the Coalition Government introduced Shared Parental Leave by which mothers can share some of their leave allowance with their partners. However, with uptake of SPL at less than two per cent nationally, momentum is building behind calls to improve the UK’s paternity leave which, at two weeks paid at less than half the minimum wage and no entitlement for self-employed people, is now one of the least generous in Europe.

Alex Lloyd Hunter, The Dad Shift co-founder, said:

“The most important thing fathers can provide their families with, and their boys in particular, is their presence.

“The upcoming review is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to both transform support for fathers and help address the growing challenges highlighted by shows like Adolescence.

“Active fathers help protect boys from the message of toxic influencers, and we need to do more to support them – starting with improving the UK's paternity leave.”

Pictured - Justin Madders MP with dads’ representative Alex Lloyd Hunter.