§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate she has made of the(a) financial costs and (b) benefits to her Department of the Parental Leave Directive. [42489]
§ Mr. MorleyThe Parental Leave Directive which introduced parental leave entitlements (along with increased maternity benefits and time-off to care for dependants) was introduced into UK law by the Employment Relations Act 1999. The Act has had a neutral financial effect and limited benefit on this Department and the Pesticides Safety Directorate, 265W Veterinary Medicines Directorate and Rural Payments Agencies, because the leave is without pay and because prior to the introduction of the legislation the Department already had in place contractual terms which were generally more favourable to staff though they did not specifically cover unpaid time-off for parental leave. As part of its overall 'family friendly' provisions this Department continues to establish arrangements which allow staff to establish a proper work/life balance. The statutory rights which have now been incorporated into staff terms and conditions provide staff with basic entitlements in the event that they fall outside the contractual entitlements. So far there have been few requests for unpaid parental leave.
Responsibility for such matters within the Central Science Laboratory Agency, the Veterinary Laboratory Agency and the Centre for Environmental, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science Agency has been delegated to Agency Chief Executives and I have asked them to reply direct.