- with Senior Company Executives, HR and Inhouse Counsel
- with readers working within the Media & Information, Property and Construction & Engineering industries
No firm commitments from Government on improving paternity rights.
In December 2024, the Women and Equalities Committee (WEC) launched an enquiry into paternity rights and shared parental leave (SPL). The Committee published its findings in a report entitled: Equality at Work: Paternity and Shared Parental Leave, making numerous recommendations for reform to the Government.
On 19 September 2025, the Government issued its formal response to the Committee's recommendations, outlining its current position and proposed next steps..
In our article we summarise the key recommendations of the WEC's report, highlight the practical issues of the current system, and review the Government's response to the WEC's calls for reform.
The WEC's report and the Government's response can be accessed here.
Women and Equalities Committee Report
The WEC report explored how paternity leave and SPL should be reformed. The WEC made various recommendations to the Government in their report, including:
- extending statutory paternity leave to six weeks;
- increasing statutory paternity pay (SPP) to match the rate of statutory maternity pay (SMP) for the first six weeks;
- making paternity leave a day one right for all employees;
- reforming the SPL system by simplifying the eligibility criteria;
- improving support for self-employed parents, kinship carers, single-parent families, and parents of multiple births;
- tackling cultural and societal barriers that prevent fathers from taking paternity leave; and
- reviewing legal protections against discrimination for fathers who take paternity leave.
UK lags behind comparable countries on paternity rights
The report highlights that, compared to other countries, the UK offers significantly less paid leave for fathers and co-partners, with 11 out of the 38 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development countries granting more than six weeks at full salary. Spain provides 16 weeks at 100% of earnings; Norway almost fully replaces gross pay for an average earner during parental leave; and Japan offers up to 52 weeks of leave at around 60% of pay. The UK by contrast allows for fathers and co-partners to take up to two weeks off work and those eligible for statutory paternity pay (after 26 weeks' service) receive the lower of a capped flat rate of £187.18 a week or 90% of their average weekly earnings.
Areas identified for improvement
The Committee highlighted several issues with the current system, including:
- a low take-up of paternity leave and SPL;
- the presence of financial barriers, especially for families where fathers earn less or are self-employed;
- the presence of complex rules for SPL, particularly around eligibility and timing;
- a lack of legal protection for fathers who take leave; and
- the existence of social pressures that discourage men from taking time off to care for their children.
Government's response
Whilst the Government recognised many of the WEC's concerns, it failed to make any firm commitments to introduce changes. Instead, the Government confirmed that the WEC's concerns will be considered as part of its wide-ranging 18-month review of the parental leave and pay system which began in July 2025.
Key points from the Government's response include:
- statutory paternity pay: the Government promised to review all parental leave and pay entitlements as part of its current review, intending to reduce the gender pay gap and improve women's labour market outcomes. However, it has expressed concerns that significantly increasing SPP could impose substantial costs on businesses and the public purse, which may have economic impacts;
- day one rights to paid paternity leave: in April 2026, the Government will make unpaid paternity leave and unpaid parental leave day one rights for employees. However, it has raised concerns that paid leave would create significant practical and financial challenges, as employers would lack earnings data for new hires meaning they may struggle to administer payments fairly and efficiently;
- increasing the length and flexibility of paternity leave: the upcoming Employment Rights Bill (ERB) will allow paternity leave to be taken after SPL, giving working families the option to stay in work and advance their careers after starting a family;
- addressing the lack of provision for self-employed parents: the Government recognises the lack of support for self-employed fathers and will explore whether changes to the current parental leave system are needed;
- addressing the cultural barriers: the Government will continue to hold focus groups and roundtables with parents, advocacy groups, and trade unions to better understand the lived experience of taking parental leave;
- reviewing discrimination protections: the Government will review legal protections for fathers taking leave, including protection from redundancy;
- considering kinship carers: the review will consider how to better support kinship carers, and a £40 million pilot scheme has been announced to trial a new Kinship Allowance in several local authorities; and
- addressing inequalities for single parents and parents of multiple births: the Government will consider the international parental leave systems highlighted by the WEC to ensure fairness between different types of parents.
What happens next?
Whilst the Government's response shows a willingness to take on board the WEC's concerns, it contains few commitments to make any immediate changes. The full review is expected to run until early 2027, meaning that it could take several years for any changes to the parental leave and pay system be implemented. It seems that financial support for fathers wishing to take paternity leave will continue to lag behind the more generous systems of comparable countries, and the UK system will continue to incentivise mothers to take the lion's share of caring responsibilities for very young children.
In the meantime, the ERB will introduce some immediate improvements, including day one rights for employees wanting to take statutory unpaid paternity and parental leave and greater flexibility around when paternity leave can be taken.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
