Today, Gareth presented his Private Member's Bill to the House of Commons for its first reading. His bill, entitled Paternity (Leave and Pay) Bill, seeks to extend the eligibility of paternity leave and pay so that it includes more new dads, as well as to increase the flexibility in when dads can take this statutory leave. If passed, the Bill will allow more new dads to take paternity leave to spend time with their babies in the crucial earliest days, as well as enabling dads to support mums and their families by taking leave at a time that best suits individual families, empowering new parents to make decisions that best work for their new baby, and for them and their careers.
In the clip, Gareth introduces his Bill to the Commons for its first reading, which is something of a formality and proceeds without a debate. Debate on the Bill will begin at its second reading - if it is high up enough on the day's order paper - the date of which Gareth selects in his brief exchange with the Deputy Speaker.
