In the 44 years since statutory maternity leave was introduced to the UK, the experience of parenting has changed almost beyond recognition. Fathers and same-sex partners want to be more involved and share parenting more equally – not just in the later stages of childhood, but right from the first second that their child is born.
I firmly believe that mums and dads should be given the opportunity to do this and that’s why, back when I was shadow minister for women and equalities, I first set out to develop the shared parental leave policy we have today.
This provides much greater choice over who cares for a new child in the first year and the flexibility for families to share the maternity leave period as they see fit. It has steadily begun to challenge and change societal attitudes towards who “should” stay at home and care for a baby.
But all too often it is still mothers, not fathers, who shoulder the burden of childcare. So it is clear that we need to do more.
The UK has some of the most generous maternity leave allowances in the world, but we only guarantee new dads and same-sex partners a fortnight off work – making it harder for them to bond with their child and care for their partner, and implying that it is the lot of the mother to be the primary caregiver.
More often than not it is the mother who cuts her hours or opts to work flexibly; the mother who decides not to go for promotion; the mother who stays at home when the child is ill. Much of the gender pay gap can be traced back to the balance of childcare responsibilities, while the lack of women in senior positions is partly caused by the fact that mothers, much more than fathers, are too often expected to juggle careers with caring.
This is not inevitable. Experience around the world shows that when fathers are primary caregivers in the first year, even for just a short period, they are more likely to be involved in childcare over the longer term.
But we’re not sending fathers the correct message when our current leave allowances give women 26 times more leave than men.
Evidence shows that for fathers to take more leave it needs to be dedicated leave for them, and it needs to be paid better. That’s why on Friday we will launch a consultation looking at how we can improve the current system – calling for views on whether paternity leave and pay should be increased or whether shared parental leave should be reformed.
I believe that increasing paternity entitlements will not only give fathers more time to spend with their newborns, but will also be an important step towards equalising the roles of men and women both at home and in the workplace. It will help ensure from the outset that caring for children is a shared responsibility and means that employers will not be able to make assumptions about who will take on childcare responsibilities when a couple start a family.
Our consultation will also address the current failing to provide specific support for parents who are already dealing with the unimaginable stress of their babies needing special neonatal care.
When I visited Alder Hay children’s hospital earlier this year, I heard first-hand from parents whose babies had been born prematurely or suffered complications early in their young lives. They had more than enough on their plates without worrying about their jobs, but the fathers in particular were all too aware that their leave was ticking away, and that they would likely have to be back at work long before their partner and precious newborn came home.
That’s not fair and it’s not right. So we will also be proposing a new neonatal leave and pay entitlement, for parents whose babies need to spend a prolonged period in neonatal care.
Under our plans parents will be given a week of leave and pay for every week their child is in hospital, making our system fairer and more compassionate.
These are issues close to my heart and I’m proud that Friday’s consultation – the next evolution of the shared parental leave policy that I started long ago – is one of my final acts as prime minister.
• Theresa May is the prime minister of the UK
