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Written question asked by Wera Hobhouse (Liberal Democrat) on Tuesday, 18 October 2022, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 20 October 2022. It was answered by Dean Russell (Conservative) on Wednesday, 26 October 2022 on behalf of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.

Paternity Leave: Fathers

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what progress the Government has made since December 2019 on making it easier for fathers to take statutory paternity leave.

Answer

Information provided by employers to HMRC show the number of individuals in receipt of Statutory Paternity Pay (SPP). This data provides a broad indication of take-up but does not include anyone taking unpaid paternity leave.

Table 1: Individuals in receipt of Statutory Paternity Pay, 2015/16 to 2021/22 (the latest year for which full year data is available)

Year (April to March)

No. of individuals in receipt of SPP

2015-16

215,100

2016-17

219,900

2017-18

212,700

2018-19

201,800

2019-20

208,000

2020-21

176,400

2021-22

204,200
  1. Figures are rounded to the nearest hundred.
  2. Figures are based on the total number of individuals in a given year, irrespective of when the payment first started. Some individuals will be counted across two years.

In 2019, the Government consulted on high-level options for reforming the parental leave and pay system, including making changes to Paternity Leave. We are currently considering responses to the consultation and will respond in due course.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
65959
Session
2022-23
Grouped for answer
Yes
Subjects
Fathers Paternity leave
Contains statistics
Yes
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk