Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
    • Advertise
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Equality, diversity and inclusion
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • XpertHR
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Pricing
    • Free trial
    • Subscribe
    • XpertHR USA
  • Webinars
  • OHW+

Personnel Today

Register
Log in
Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
    • Advertise
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Equality, diversity and inclusion
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • XpertHR
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Pricing
    • Free trial
    • Subscribe
    • XpertHR USA
  • Webinars
  • OHW+

Equality, diversity and inclusionFamily-friendly working

Political parties unveil childcare proposals for working parents

by Personnel Today 1 Mar 2005
by Personnel Today 1 Mar 2005

A shake-up for childcare arrangements and statutory maternity pay could play a major role in the next general election, with the Labour and Conservative parties both unveiling new plans for working parents.

Opposition leader Michael Howard has revealed new proposals to help working parents deal with rising costs of childcare by reforming the working tax credit system.

He also pledged to investigate the feasibility of increasing statutory maternity pay during the first six months after a child is born.

The childcare element of the tax credits would be paid directly to parents to spend as they choose, although Howard promised this wouldn’t create further red tape.

“We can ensure that regulation is a light touch and we can help support informal care more effectively,” he said.

Tony Blair’s strategy promises affordable childcare for all children between three and 14 years of age. In a speech to the Daycare Trust charity, he explained that a more flexible and integrated approach towards childcare was required.

He said that flexible working rights for new parents would not be altered before 2006, but that in the long-term, he envisaged more paid leave for mothers and fathers, and a greater freedom in the way they choose to take it.

Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development assistant director Duncan Brown welcomed the aims of both policies, but said neither would dispel the perception among workers that levels of maternity and paternity pay were too low.

“At a time when labour shortages characterise the market, giving a good deal to working parents becomes a business necessity, not an optional extra,” he said.

“However, our most recent research shows that fathers feel they simply cannot afford to take up their statutory right to paid leave at the current rate.”

Meanwhile, the Equal Opportunities Commission has called for employers to have the right to ask women for possible return-to-work dates at a much earlier stage of their maternity leave, to make the process more manageable for businesses.

Personnel Today
Personnel Today

Personnel Today articles are written by an expert team of award-winning journalists who have been covering HR and L&D for many years. Some of our content is attributed to "Personnel Today" for a number of reasons, including: when numerous authors are associated with writing or editing a piece; or when the author is unknown (particularly for older articles).

previous post
Royal Bank Of Scotland staff win 10% profit share bonus
next post
The proactive approach

You may also like

Transport sector recruitment ‘should be overhauled to improve...

12 Aug 2022

Train conductor unfairly dismissed after ‘black privilege’ comment

10 Aug 2022

How to create an inclusive workplace for religion

29 Jul 2022

‘I’m not an activist: I just want fairer...

25 Jul 2022

Why employers should collect workforce disability data

25 Jul 2022

More than a third of retailers have all-white...

21 Jul 2022

FTSE 100 firms outpace US and Canadian businesses...

19 Jul 2022

Feeling safe at work: Sandi Wassmer talks to...

18 Jul 2022

Next prime minister ‘must introduce ethnicity pay gap...

14 Jul 2022

One in nine UK workers is in insecure...

12 Jul 2022
  • 6 reasons why work-based learning is better than traditional training PROMOTED | A recent Fortune/Deloitte survey found that 71% of CEOs are anticipating that this year’s biggest business disrupter...Read more
  • Strengthening Scotland’s public services through virtual recruiting PROMOTED | This website is Scotland's go-to place for job seekers looking to apply for roles in public services...Read more
  • What’s next for L&D? Enter Alchemist… PROMOTED | It’s time to turn off the tedious and get ready for interactive and immersive learning experiences...Read more
  • Simple mistakes are blighting the onboarding experience PROMOTED | The onboarding of new hires is a company’s best chance...Read more
  • Preventing Burnout: How can HR help key workers get the right help? PROMOTED | Workplace wellbeing may seem a distant memory...Read more

Personnel Today Jobs
 

Search Jobs

PERSONNEL TODAY

About us
Contact us
Browse all HR topics
Email newsletters
Content feeds
Cookies policy
Privacy policy
Terms and conditions

JOBS

Personnel Today Jobs
Post a job
Why advertise with us?

EVENTS & PRODUCTS

The Personnel Today Awards
The RAD Awards
Employee Benefits
Forum for Expatriate Management
OHW+
Whatmedia

ADVERTISING & PR

Advertising opportunities
Features list 2022

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin


© 2011 - 2022 DVV Media International Ltd

Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
    • Advertise
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Equality, diversity and inclusion
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • XpertHR
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Pricing
    • Free trial
    • Subscribe
    • XpertHR USA
  • Webinars
  • OHW+