Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether the Government’s plans to extend the entitlement to leave for unpaid carers to one week will be in the form of paid leave.

This Government is determined to make Britain the best place in the world to work. As announced in the Queens’ Speech, we will be bringing forward an Employment Rights Bill to deliver the greatest reform of workers’ rights in over 20 years. This will include measures to introduce an entitlement to leave for unpaid carers.

The Government’s proposal is to introduce a week of unpaid Carer’s Leave. This will be in addition to existing employment rights, such as the right to request flexible working, annual leave and the right to time off for family and dependants which help employees balance work with caring responsibilities. In taking this forward, the Department will continue to engage widely to understand how carers’ needs can best be met.