Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent steps he has taken to encourage the take up of shared parental leave.

In order to make it easier for parents to access Shared Parental Leave, and easier for employers to administer it, the Government also launched a new online tool last year. This shows how many weeks of leave and pay are available and lets parents map out how weeks will be shared with their partner, supporting conversations with employers.

In addition, the Government is evaluating the Shared Parental Leave and Pay scheme, which will help us understand what would enable more parents to take up the entitlement. We will publish the findings in due course.