Asked by: Amanda Martin (Labour - Portsmouth North)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he takes to ensure that regulations for parental and compassionate leave are communicated to personnel in each branch of the armed forces.
Answered by Calvin Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans and People)
The Ministry of Defence recognises that Service personnel must be able to balance the demands of military service with their family and personal responsibilities. We are committed to providing fair, compassionate and accessible parental and compassionate leave policies across the Armed Forces, ensuring personnel receive appropriate support at significant moments in their lives while maintaining operational effectiveness.
It is taking time to collate the required information to answer the hon. Member's Questions. I will write to her when the information is available, and a copy of this letter will be placed in the library of The House.
Asked by: Amanda Martin (Labour - Portsmouth North)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, in what way parental and compassionate leave policies differ in terms of (a) practical application and (b) administrative processes between each branch of the armed forces.
Answered by Calvin Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans and People)
The Ministry of Defence recognises that Service personnel must be able to balance the demands of military service with their family and personal responsibilities. We are committed to providing fair, compassionate and accessible parental and compassionate leave policies across the Armed Forces, ensuring personnel receive appropriate support at significant moments in their lives while maintaining operational effectiveness.
It is taking time to collate the required information to answer the hon. Member's Questions. I will write to her when the information is available, and a copy of this letter will be placed in the library of The House.
Asked by: Amanda Martin (Labour - Portsmouth North)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the retention rate is for armed forces personnel who (a) have and (b) have not taken paternity leave.
Answered by Calvin Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans and People)
The Ministry of Defence recognises that Service personnel must be able to balance the demands of military service with their family and personal responsibilities. We are committed to providing fair, compassionate and accessible parental and compassionate leave policies across the Armed Forces, ensuring personnel receive appropriate support at significant moments in their lives while maintaining operational effectiveness.
It is taking time to collate the required information to answer the hon. Member's Questions. I will write to her when the information is available, and a copy of this letter will be placed in the library of The House.
Asked by: Amanda Martin (Labour - Portsmouth North)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many armed forces personnel took paternity leave, broken down by (a) branch of the armed forces and (b) age in each of the last five years.
Answered by Calvin Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans and People)
The Ministry of Defence recognises that Service personnel must be able to balance the demands of military service with their family and personal responsibilities. We are committed to providing fair, compassionate and accessible parental and compassionate leave policies across the Armed Forces, ensuring personnel receive appropriate support at significant moments in their lives while maintaining operational effectiveness.
It is taking time to collate the required information to answer the hon. Member's Questions. I will write to her when the information is available, and a copy of this letter will be placed in the library of The House.
Asked by: Amanda Martin (Labour - Portsmouth North)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) parental and (b) compassionate leave requests were (i) refused, (ii) deferred and (iii) recalled in each branch of the armed forces in 2025.
Answered by Calvin Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans and People)
The Ministry of Defence recognises that Service personnel must be able to balance the demands of military service with their family and personal responsibilities. We are committed to providing fair, compassionate and accessible parental and compassionate leave policies across the Armed Forces, ensuring personnel receive appropriate support at significant moments in their lives while maintaining operational effectiveness.
It is taking time to collate the required information to answer the hon. Member's Questions. I will write to her when the information is available, and a copy of this letter will be placed in the library of The House.
Asked by: Amanda Martin (Labour - Portsmouth North)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of moving parental and compassionate leave requests outside of the direct chain of command.
Answered by Calvin Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans and People)
The Ministry of Defence recognises that Service personnel must be able to balance the demands of military service with their family and personal responsibilities. We are committed to providing fair, compassionate and accessible parental and compassionate leave policies across the Armed Forces, ensuring personnel receive appropriate support at significant moments in their lives while maintaining operational effectiveness.
It is taking time to collate the required information to answer the hon. Member's Questions. I will write to her when the information is available, and a copy of this letter will be placed in the library of The House.
Asked by: Amanda Martin (Labour - Portsmouth North)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether commanding officers receive training on implementing parental and compassionate leave policies.
Answered by Calvin Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans and People)
The Ministry of Defence recognises that Service personnel must be able to balance the demands of military service with their family and personal responsibilities. We are committed to providing fair, compassionate and accessible parental and compassionate leave policies across the Armed Forces, ensuring personnel receive appropriate support at significant moments in their lives while maintaining operational effectiveness.
It is taking time to collate the required information to answer the hon. Member's Questions. I will write to her when the information is available, and a copy of this letter will be placed in the library of The House.
Asked by: Amanda Martin (Labour - Portsmouth North)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he plans to commission an independent review of the compliance of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary's maternity and parental leave policies with employment law.
Answered by Louise Sandher-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
A comprehensive funded programme to modernise all Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) supporting tools and policies is already underway, in collaboration with relevant Government Departments and stakeholders. There are no plans for an independent review.
The Employment Relations (Flexible Working) Act became law in April 2024 and the Ministry of Defence Policies have been updated, with appropriate consultation, to comply. Any legacy or existing RFA policy or process that is identified that may inadvertently or deliberately have scope to do so will be suspended and reviewed, in collaboration with expert stakeholders and our Maritime Trade Unions.
Asked by: Amanda Martin (Labour - Portsmouth North)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the level of resources allocated to the Royal Fleet Auxiliary's human resources function (a) to address parental policy concerns raised by trade unions (b) in general.
Answered by Louise Sandher-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
The Department keeps the allocation of resources under regular review to ensure it is able to meet its obligations. A targeted programme to develop the lived experience within the Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) is underway, and this is balanced against wider civil service headcount considerations. The RFA routinely consults with Trade Unions.
Asked by: Amanda Martin (Labour - Portsmouth North)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what his policy is on Royal Fleet Auxiliary personnel returning from maternity leave being required to (a) return to sea-based duties within a specified timeframe and (b) take unpaid leave to cover gaps in shore-based assignments.
Answered by Louise Sandher-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
Managers have latitude to consider individual needs when scheduling working patterns at sea. This includes recognising family circumstances, parental obligations and employee requests. It also necessarily means ensuring that this flexibility protects Defence outputs and maximises training opportunities while allowing all personnel to take leave and benefit from existing Civil Service terms and conditions of service.
The Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) does not have any permanent onshore posts and there is no facility to provide bespoke roles adapted to individual circumstances. There are 100 rotational shore jobs that support RFA and Defence output, with clear key skills and experience requirements.