Self-employed fathers in the UK face a significant policy gap that leaves them without paid paternity leave, creating financial hardship during critical family moments.

Self-employed fathers in the UK face a significant policy gap that leaves them without paid paternity leave, creating financial hardship during critical family moments. While employed fathers receive up to two weeks of statutory paid leave, self-employed workers receive nothing, and even self-employed mothers qualify for maternity support. A carpenter from Norfolk highlights the disparity, noting that European countries like Norway, Sweden, and Germany provide substantially more support for self-employed parents. Campaign groups like The Dad Shift are pushing the Labour government to address this inequality, arguing that extending paternity leave would benefit lower and middle-income fathers across industries like construction. MPs have previously called the UK's parental leave system one of the worst in the developed world with fundamental flaws.