§ Lord Taylor of Warwickasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they have any plans to increase paid parental leave. [HL3793]
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Trade and Industry (Lord Sainsbury of Turville)The Government introduced a substantial package of laws for working parents in April 2003, including increasing paid maternity leave and a new right to paid paternity and adoption leave.
The DTI is taking forward a programme of work to explore what additional support could be provided to people balancing work and caring responsibilities, in 84WA ways that meet both individual and business needs. The work includes a series of roundtables in England, Scotland and Wales and a Citizens' Jury has also taken place.
The Government are committed to not making any changes to laws for working parents before 2006 after the impact of the current laws has been reviewed.