Work and Families Bill

I am grateful for the opportunity to hold this debate. The hon. Member for Angus (Mr. Weir) has outlined, in relation to its wording, why we cannot support the new clause, but I am happy to accept the spirit and intention of what it tries to achieve. I am grateful for the contributions of the hon. Members for North Norfolk (Norman Lamb) and for Broxbourne (Mr. Walker) and of my hon. Friend the Member for Tooting (Mr. Khan). It was always a great pleasure for me to meet the hon. Member for Broxbourne in his former capacity, and I hope that I have not done too much damage to his career or mine by saying that. His experience in the field has been vital in informing our debate. Of necessity, we expressed a wide range of views on direct payments, as there is great strength of feeling about the differences between us. With paternity leave, however, we are looking at culture change; we are trying to ensure that there is a continuous process whereby employers offer the best support for their employees. The measure has not come out of thin air; it is the result of consultation and discussion. One of my concerns has been that the pace of change in the world of work is so dramatic that it is important for the Government, employers and employee representatives to keep up with the requirements of the people that we represent. Research on how the existing rights for statutory paternity pay and leave are used shows that fathers want the flexibility to spend more time with their babies in the first year and are taking advantage of the leave and pay available. The Department of Trade and Industry supported the Equal Opportunities Commission survey, ““Fathers in the First Year””, which looked into how much time fathers took off work when their child was born, as well as the attitude of fathers and their partners to fathers’ caring role. The hon. Member for Broxbourne told us about his wife’s view. I am sure that we have some parenting courses that he could follow. The world is changing and it is important that we achieve that culture change. The hon. Member for North Norfolk spoke about the need for great care in drawing up the regulations. I agree that it is important that we get that right, and under the affirmative regulation principle, we are taking plenty of time to ensure that we do so.