With parents in France being encouraged financially to have three or more children, is the UK government doing enough to help families?
Since writing an article on the UK's childcare costs last month, I've been amazed at the response I've received from readers. Indeed, there are a lot of mums (and dads!) out there who agree wholeheartedly that parents can feel quite out of pocket if they try to return to work, due to the shockingly high cost of childcare in the UK (we pay around 75% of childcare costs in the UK, compared to the rest of Europe where families pay no more than 30%).
However, equally there are parents amongst you that have pointed out that some mothers and fathers would love the chance to stay at home and raise their youngsters, but can't afford to. And a number of readers have admitted that although they would like to have more than one child, they don't actually reckon they could afford to.
Indeed, we all know that we're currently living in a top-heavy society here in the UK, with pensioners outnumbering people of working age in a few years time. And if parents are put off having more than one child, birth rates will decrease yet further. What's more, as this is a problem all over Europe, many other governments have highlighted low birth rates as a high priority.
So what is the solution? Well, one point that has been raised time and time again is the fact that many of us believe the government should be doing more to try and help families in the UK. Take for example this quote from generallybroke on our discussion board: "I appreciate the financial difficulties regarding childcare. However, I have a different opinion. The Government should be providing more financial assistance to those parents who choose to sacrifice one income to stay at home to raise their children themselves".
UK System
Of course, many will argue that the government has already implemented some good schemes for families. Child Benefit, the Childcare voucher scheme, free part-time nursery places when a child turns three and working tax credits all have their place in helping UK families. Parents are also entitled to a total of 13 weeks unpaid parental leave to care for their child and can apply for flexible working, if they have a child under six.
Most working mothers can also now take up to nine month's paid maternity leave (the first six weeks paid at 90% of salary, and the remaining at statutory maternity pay currently set at £112.75 per week) which can be boosted (unpaid) to a full year. Fathers are entitled to two weeks of paid paternity leave (set at the same level). However, these benefits can perhaps be looked on slightly unfavourably when compared to those offered in other parts of Europe.
Sweden and Norway, for instance, probably boast some of the most generous maternity benefits. In Sweden each parent is entitled to up to 18 months leave, which is paid for by the government. Public day care is heavily subsidised and mothers are entitled to reduce their working hours when returning to work. In Norway, mothers can take up to 12 months maternity leave at 80% salary, or ten months at full salary. Fathers can take almost all of that leave instead of mothers and the leave is financed through taxes so companies don't lose out.
And in France, working women are entitled to maternity leave from six weeks before and ten weeks after the birth of first and second children -- and this leave is mandatory. After this, parents can choose to take parental leave until the child turns three, at which point they are entitled to return to their previous or similar job (parents also receive a parental leave allowance if they interrupt their employment). What's more, maternity benefit equals net salary, up to a certain threshold.
However, the most interesting part of the French system involves having a third child (or more). Unlike the UK, where benefits remain pretty constant no matter how many children you have (Child benefit is paid at a slightly higher rate for the first child only) the French system positively rewards parents who have a third child. Paid maternity leave increases by a whopping ten weeks for a third (or subsequent) child and families are given a monthly grant, paid for the first year only when a third child is born. And interestingly, this grant is tied to salary -- making it very attractive to working women.
Moving onto day-care, young children in France are entitled to places at full time childcare centres, for which parents pay on a sliding scale. Lower income families typically pay nothing, with better off parents paying 10-15%. Interestingly, as the French believe nursery schools are vital to the development of vocabulary and communication skills, practically all two and three year olds attend pre-school, regardless of whether or not they have a parent at home during the day. All of this helps to explain perhaps why France has one of the highest birth rates in Europe (at 1.9 babies per woman).
It certainly makes for interesting reading. And although I know that some of the countries mentioned have extremely different taxation systems in place to fund these benefits, the governments in question have clearly indicated that families are a high priority in their plans. It certainly raises the question of whether or not the government could be doing more to help UK families.