By Jason Groves
Last updated at 4:47 PM on 17th January 2011
Fathers will be given up to ten months of paid paternity leave under plans outlined today by Nick Clegg.
With backing from David Cameron, the Deputy Prime Minister condemned 'Edwardian' attitudes to childcare and traditional family roles.
His plans, which business leaders last night described as a 'complete nightmare', go even further than those championed under Labour by Harriet Harman.
Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg will announce reforms which will allow couples to choose how they divide parental leave between them. He is pictured here with his wife Miriam and their son Miguel
Parents will be allowed to divide between them almost all of the existing 12 months of maternity leave.
They may even be able to split the time off into stretches as short as a few weeks.
The proposal has been a key coalition demand for Mr Clegg, who has often spoken of his wish to be a hands-on father to his three children.
He claimed it is 'madness' to deny men the chance to stay at home and look after their children while mothers go back to work.
At present, women are entitled to six weeks of maternity leave on 90 per cent pay, followed by 33 weeks on statutory maternity pay of 125 a week.
In total, they can remain off work for up to a year. Men are allowed two weeks of paternity leave, on statutory pay.
Andrew Cave, of the Federation of Small Businesses, said: 'This is the wrong measure at the wrong time.
'The Government says it wants businesses to take on more staff but this sort of thing just throws up more obstacles. Maternity leave is already the most complex aspect of employment law for many businesses and this risks making it a complete nightmare.
The new paternity laws could see new fathers entitled to ten months of paid paternity leave
'Businesses will have to co-ordinate with other employers to work out whether parents have used up their allowance – it is a complete minefield.'
The new paternity laws could see new fathers entitled to ten months of paid paternity leave Adam Marshall, of the British Chambers of Commerce, said the proposals could prevent employers from taking on staff.
'This may be politically popular but it is going to cause great difficulties for many small and medium sized businesses,' he said. 'You have to question how this squares with all the business-friendly rhetoric coming out of the Government.
'If parents are able to take leave in chunks of a few weeks here, a few weeks there it is going to make it virtually impossible for small businesses to plan.'
In his speech today Mr Clegg paid tribute to Miss Harman for pushing through measures due to come into force in April, which will allow parents to share up to six months of paid leave following the birth of a child.
But he argued that the system is so outdated that change must go further.
He said: 'These rules patronise women and marginalise men. They're based on a view of life in which mothers stay at home and fathers are the only breadwinners.
'That's an Edwardian system that has no place in 21st century Britain.
'Women suffer. Mothers are expected to take on the vast bulk of childcare themselves. If they don't, they very often feel judged.
'If they do, they worry about being penalised at work. So it's no surprise that many working women feel that they can't win.
'Children suffer, too often missing out on time with their fathers. And men suffer too.
'More and more fathers want to play a hands-on role with their young children. But too many feel that they can't.
'It's madness that we are denying them that chance.' Unlike most families, Mr Clegg's wife Miriam Gonzalez Durantez, a lawyer, is the main breadwinner.
But Mr Clegg insisted the new plans should not just be the preserve of the wealthy.
Under the proposals, only the first few weeks of maternity leave would remain exclusively for the use of women.
After a short period, perhaps two months, parents would be able to divide up the remaining ten months as they like. This could include allowing both parents to be off at the same time.
To allow time for consultation, the proposals will not be introduced until 2015.
TAX BREAKS FOR COUPLES: A MORE STABLE FUTURE?
David Cameron's tax breaks for married couples will do nothing to keep families together, according to a report to be launched today by Nick Clegg.
The allowance could even be damaging because the handout could persuade arguing parents to stay together rather than split up and give their child a more stable future, said Demos, a left-wing think tank.
It cites evidence that children do better in a stable single-parent household than one in which their parents live together after their relationship breaks down.
Demos polled 1,017 parents for the Home Front report and found that a third of fathers work more than 48 hours a week, compared with a quarter of men without children.
One in eight fathers works more than 60 hours a week and most increase their hours after their youngest turns six.
I am expecting a baby in July and these new plans sound like a good idea to me. As the main wage earner in my household is is not financially viable for me to have a long time off work and allowing my husband to stay at home and look after the baby sounds like a great idea!
- Sarah, Birmingham, 17/1/2011 18:40
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