Scottish Secretary to become first Cabinet minister to take full paternity leave

Ian Murray is set to become the first UK Cabinet minister to take full paternity leave.

The Scottish Secretary will take two weeks off next month as he and his wife expect their second child.

The Edinburgh South Labour MP said he hopes the move will encourage other fathers to take the time off they are legally entitled to.

According to the Trades Union Congress, only 21% of fathers take paternity leave.

Mr Murray used the announcement to highlight UK Government changes to workers’ rights, giving employees access to a number of rights from the day they start their job – including paternity leave and parental leave.

He said: “As an expectant dad I’m hoping I can encourage working dads across the country to take their full paternity leave and spend their time with their new baby in those special early weeks.

“We know one in five dads and partners who are entitled to paternity leave don’t take it – that should change in my view.

“I’m proud to serve in a Government that is delivering better rights for working families by giving dads day one rights to paternity leave, as well as a range of other rights, increasing the minimum wage and starting the process to ban zero-hours contracts.

“What is good for working families is good for Scotland’s economy – giving people the security and opportunity to get on will help kick-start growth.”

George Gabriel, co-founder of the Dad Shift, a group which campaigns for better paternity leave, said: “A huge congratulations to Ian and his family on their upcoming new arrival.

“We know 82% of Scots agree that all dads, including public servants and politicians, should be able to take a decent amount of paid leave and so it’s fantastic that Ian is becoming the first ever serving Secretary of State for Scotland to take paternity leave.

“As a country our statutory paternity leave offer lags way behind other countries and at the Dad Shift we believe examples like this are a crucial step towards making sure every family is set up for success when a new baby arrives – particularly with Labour committed to a review of parental leave policies in their first year.”

Carole Erskine, head of policy and campaigns in Scotland for the charity Pregnant Then Screwed, said: “We want to send our heartfelt congratulations to the Secretary of State and his family on the news of their imminent new arrival.

“The fact that Ian is the first Cabinet minister to take their full entitlement says a lot about the work that there is to be done on paternity leave in the UK and how far we have to go to normalise the role of dads as caregivers.

“We are loudly applauding Ian for setting an example that we hope other members of Government will follow, and we hope to see Labour address the challenges faced by all of the dads and partners who are unable to spend crucial time with their new families.”