Statutory Instruments
2013 No. 283
Terms And Conditions Of Employment
The Parental Leave (EU Directive) Regulations 2013
Made
13th February 2013
Coming into force
8th March 2013
The Secretary of State is a Minister designated( 1 ) for the purposes of section 2(2) of the European Communities Act 1972( 2 ) in relation to employment rights and duties.
The Secretary of State makes the following Regulations in exercise of the powers conferred by section 2(2) of the European Communities Act 1972 and section 76(2) of the Employment Rights Act 1996( 3 ).
In accordance with paragraph 2(2) of Schedule 2 to the 1972 Act and section 236(3) of the 1996 Act, a draft of this instrument was laid before Parliament and approved by a resolution of each House of Parliament.
Citation and commencement
1. These Regulations may be cited as the Parental Leave (EU Directive) Regulations 2013 and come into force on 8th March 2013.
Amendment to the Employment Rights Act 1996
2. In section 80F of the Employment Rights Act 1996( 4 ) (statutory right to request contract variation), at the end of subsection (8)(a)(ii) insert “(other than an agency worker who is returning to work from a period of parental leave under regulations under section 76)”.
Amendments to the Maternity and Parental Leave etc. Regulations 1999
3. —(1)The Maternity and Parental Leave etc. Regulations 1999( 5 ) are amended as follows.
(2) In regulation 14 (extent of entitlement)—
(a) for paragraph (1) substitute—
“ (1) An employee is entitled to eighteen weeks’ leave in respect of any individual child. ” ;
(b) omit paragraph (1A).
(3) After regulation 16 (default provisions in respect of parental leave), insert—
“ Review
16A. —(1) The Secretary of State must from time to time—
(a) carry out a review of regulations 13 to 16 and Schedule 2,
(b) set out the conclusions of the review in a report, and
(c) publish the report.
(2) In carrying out the review the Secretary of State must, so far as is reasonable, have regard to how Council Directive 2010/18/EU of 8 March 2010 implementing the revised framework agreement on parental leave ( 6 ) (which is implemented by means of regulations 13 to 16 and Schedule 2) is implemented in other member States.
(3) The report must in particular—
(a) set out the objectives intended to be achieved by the regulatory system established by those regulations,
(b) assess the extent to which those objectives are achieved, and
(c) assess whether those objectives remain appropriate and, if so, the extent to which they could be achieved with a system that imposes less regulation.
(4) The first report under this regulation must be published before the end of the period of five years beginning with the day on which this regulation comes into force.
(5) Reports under this regulation are afterwards to be published at intervals not exceeding five years. ” .
Jo Swinson
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Employment Relations and Consumer Affairs
Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
13th February 2013
1972 c.68 ; section 2(2) was amended by the Legislative and Regulatory Reform Act 2006 (c.51) , section 27(1) and the European Union (Amendment) Act 2008 (c.7) , section 3(3).
c.18; section 76 was substituted by section 7 of and Part 1 of Schedule 4 to the Employment Relations Act 1999 (c.26) .
1996 c.18 ; section 80F was inserted by section 47 of the Employment Act 2002 (c. 22) .
S.1. 1999/3312 ; regulation 14(1A) was inserted by S.I. 2001/4010 .
OJ No L 68, 18.03.2010, p13.