Social engineering insanity

New fathers to get five-and-a-half months' paid paternity leave under plans for time off 'shared' with mother

By Jason Groves

Shared leave: The government plans will also allow parents to take their leave in 'chunks'

New fathers will qualify for almost six months’ paid paternity leave under controversial plans to be unveiled by ministers today.

The shake-up will see the standard paternity leave offered to fathers extended from two weeks to six.

But under radical plans for ‘shared’ parental leave, fathers could then take a further seven months off if the mother goes back to work early. All but the last three months would be paid.

The plans, first championed by Nick Clegg in the Mail in January, will allow parents to take their leave in ‘chunks’ of a few weeks or months at a time – despite warnings that it would be hugely disruptive for business.

The changes go even further than those pushed through by Labour’s Harriet Harman under the previous government. But they have been labelled a ‘nightmare’ by some business groups.

Business Secretary Vince Cable and Home Secretary Theresa May will today condemn Britain’s existing maternity leave rules as ‘old-fashioned, inflexible and gender-biased’.

They say ministers want fathers to be able to spend more time with their young children so they will ‘no longer have to choose between a rewarding career and a fulfilling home and personal life’.

They go on: ‘The current parental leave system is not fit for purpose.

‘The state is meddling in things it shouldn’t be – dictating to employees and employers how parental leave should be taken.’

Business leaders last night warned the changes would be a bureaucratic nightmare.

John Walker, chairman of the Federation of Small Businesses, said the changes could even deter employers from taking on new staff.

He added: ‘The Government has committed to reducing the amount of red tape that small firms have to wade through. Yet it wants to introduce additional complexity and new legislation, making it even more complicated and time consuming.

‘The Government is looking towards the private sector to lead the recovery but with many businesses already wary about taking on staff, there is a danger that changes to these rules could add to their concerns.’

Government sources said employers would have to agree to any arrangement. They added that the plan could benefit some firms because it would allow staff to come back for a brief period to work on a key project before going off on leave again.

Plans for a shake-up of parental leave were first announced by Mr Clegg in January.

The Lib Dem leader said it was ‘madness’ that fathers were allowed only two weeks off, adding: ‘These rules patronise women and marginalise men. That’s an Edwardian system that has no place in 21st-century Britain.’

Shared leave: The changes go even further than those pushed through by Labour's Harriet Harman under the previous government