BRITAIN’S military dads say they are forced back to work too soon after the birth of a baby – with nine in 10 saying two weeks’ leave isn’t enough.
A survey of more than 450 serving soldiers, sailors and personnel found overwhelming support for giving new fathers longer off with their newborns.
Many said the current system fails to reflect the unique pressures of military life Credit: PA
Defence Secretary Dan Jarvis Credit: Getty
Many said the current system fails to reflect the unique pressures of military life, with long deployments and postings often keeping families apart.
Labour MP Amanda Martin told the Commons on Monday she had heard from serving personnel about the “real strain” of starting a family while serving their country.
Pointing to the survey by The Dad Shift, she told Defence minister Calvin Bailey increasing paternity leave would boost retention, strengthen the military and “give our children a better start in life”.
Mr Bailey said service personnel are covered by the Armed Forces Occupational Paternity Leave Scheme rather than statutory paternity leave.
But he stopped short of ruling out future changes, saying he would be happy to “engage” with the MP on this matter to continue exploring further support.”
Campaigners say two weeks’ leave leaves many dads returning to duty while their partners are still recovering from childbirth.
Some also fear that extra compassionate leave, which can be granted at the discretion of commanding officers, is applied inconsistently across the services.
An open letter signed by 11 Labour MPs has pledged to take the issue directly to new Defence Secretary Dan Jarvis.
Former Defence Secretary John Healey was said to be said to be sympathetic to extending paternity leave before he quit last month.
They wrote: “Thank you for the birthdays missed, the school plays you couldn’t watch, the bedtime stories read down a phone, the family plans cut short, the ordinary moments given up so that others can live in safety.”
The MPs added that “at no time is absence more acutely felt than in the weeks and months after the birth of a new baby”, saying they had heard “the overwhelming consensus” that two weeks’ paternity leave “is just not enough”.
Recent Army veteran Marcus Roberts MBE backed the campaign, saying: “Making a longer period of paternity leave a standard policy for all would be a positive action that recognises the pressures on family life that come with serving our country.
“It would ensure that when people need to be deployed, often far away from loved ones, they can also count on a sufficient period of leave to care for their family during one of life’s most significant moments.”
Eze Chidiebere Paul
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