Parental Leave Review

Justin Madders Excerpts

Tuesday 1st July 2025 Written Statements

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business and Trade (Justin Madders)]

I wish to make a statement on the parental leave review.

The plan to make work pay

This Government are committed to making life better for families. The current parental leave and pay system does not work as well as it could. We have already taken action to improve the system by legislating, in our landmark Employment Rights Bill, to make paternity leave and unpaid parental leave “day one” rights. The Bill will also put in place legislation that makes it unlawful to dismiss pregnant women, mothers on maternity leave, and mothers who come back to work for a six-month period after they return—except in specific circumstances.

We committed to a review of the parental leave system in the plan to make work pay, and through this launch today we are delivering on this commitment.

Review: context

The review will form part of delivering the plan for change, linking to two of the Government missions: to kickstart economic growth and break down barriers to opportunity. The work of this review will support our ongoing work to raise living standards, give children the best start in life and alleviate child poverty.

This review presents a much-needed opportunity to consider our approach to the system of parental leave and pay, giving due consideration to balancing costs and benefits to both businesses and the Exchequer. All current and upcoming parental leave and pay entitlements will be in scope of the review.

Review: lead Departments

This review will be co-led by the Department for Business and Trade and the Department for Work and Pensions—the two Departments that have the main responsibility for the current parental leave framework. These Departments will work closely with other Government Departments on this cross-cutting and important policy.

Review: objectives

The current system does not have an overarching set of objectives and has grown gradually over time. This review presents an opportunity to reset our approach and the understanding of parental leave and pay and what we want the system to achieve.

We will assess the current system against the following objectives:

Our first objective is to support the physical and mental health of women during pregnancy and after giving birth to a child.

Our second objective is to support economic growth by enabling more parents to stay in work and advance in their careers after starting a family. This will particularly focus on improving both women’s labour market outcomes and the gender pay gap.

Our third objective is to ensure that there are sufficient resources and time away from work to support new and expectant parents’ wellbeing. This will also include facilitating the best start in life for babies and young children, supporting health and development outcomes.

Our fourth objective is to support parents to make balanced childcare choices that work for their families, including enabling co-parenting, and providing flexibility to reflect the realities of modern work and childcare needs.

Review: engagement

This will be an evidence-based review that reflects and considers the perspectives and experiences of those who engage with the parental leave and pay system.

There will be opportunities for stakeholders to contribute views and expertise throughout the review, including through a call for evidence that also launches today. This call for evidence seeks initial evidence specifically in relation to the objectives that will set the foundation for what we want our system to deliver.

Review: timeline

We expect the review to run for a period of 18 months. The Government will conclude the review with a set of findings and a road map and will set out next steps for taking any reforms forward to implementation.

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