Parental leave legislation could be announced later this year, Santos says

Legislation introducing statutory parental leave in Gibraltar could be announced by the end of the year, the Minister for Equality, Christian Santos has said.

The statement from Mr Santos came hours after a House of Commons committee said the UK has one of the worst statutory leave offers for fathers and other parents in the developed world.

In Gibraltar, there is no statutory entitlement to paternity leave, which currently lags behind UK legislation which allows for a maximum of two weeks’ paternity leave.

Locally, plans to modernise the law have been ongoing for years, with the consultation at an advanced stage in 2019.

But due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the changing economy, the legislation was delayed and consultation with the Chamber of Commerce, the GFSB, and the private sector has since resumed and has built upon previous work.

“We remain firmly committed to modernising family policies surrounding parental leave, with the aim of ensuring that all parents can be present for those formative early moments in their child’s life,” Mr Santos told the Chronicle.

“Achieving a fairer, more balanced distribution of leave during this vital period is a key objective for us.”

“While some may portray this as a ‘simple legislative amendment’, the reality is far more complex. There are significant financial and social implications that require thorough consultation and careful consideration.”

“Discussions with stakeholders across both the public and private sectors are ongoing, and we are focused on developing a solution that is effective, sustainable, and tailored to Gibraltar’s unique financial, taxation, and social insurance landscape.”

“We are hoping to announce something by the end of the year but our responsibility is to get it right.”

In the UK, a report from the House of Commons Women and Equalities Committee has said a maximum of two weeks’ paternity leave is “completely out of step with how most couples want to share their parenting responsibilities” and “entrenches outdated gender stereotypes about caring”.

It has also called on the UK Government to consider raising paternity pay to the level of maternity pay in the first six weeks – 90% of average earnings.

The paternity and shared parental leave report by the committee said working parents “will be let down by a review that leads only to tinkering around the edges of the system”.

Chairwoman of the Women and Equalities Committee Sarah Owen said the UK’s parental leave system was in “urgent need of an overhaul to fit with the reality of working parents’ lives”.

The report states that the UK’s rate of statutory parental pay is “completely out of kilter with the cost of living, has not kept pace with inflation and is far below rates in most comparable countries”.

It recommends phased introduction of increases to statutory pay across the system to bring rates for all working parents up to 80% or more of average earnings or the real Living Wage.

The lack of provision for self-employed fathers is “deeply unfair”, the report adds.

The committee recommends that the British government consider options for providing statutory paid leave for all self-employed working fathers as part of its review of the parental leave system, including introducing a paternity allowance for self-employed fathers and other parents, similar to maternity allowance.

The report states that the shared parental leave system is “extremely difficult for most parents and their employers to understand”.

It said a forthcoming review must examine the function and necessity of eligibility rules, with a view to “simplifying or removing the employment status, time in service and earnings criteria”.

The committee said the review should examine approaches taken in overseas systems, including the German “partnership bonus” and Portugal’s “sharing bonus”, which provide additional paid leave to couples in which both parents take a substantial portion of leave while the other returns to paid work.