Explanatory note

These Regulations provide new rights to paternity and adoption leave, to curtail adoption leave and to shared parental leave in respect of cases which involve a person who has applied with another person for a parental order under section 54 of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008 or intends to apply for such an order. Under this section a court may make an order providing for a child of a surrogate mother to be treated as the child of the applicants for the order if certain conditions are satisfied.

These Regulations should be read in conjunction with the Employment Rights Act 1996 (Application of sections 75A, 75B, 75G, 75H, 80A and 80B to Parental Order Cases) Regulations 2014. They should also be read in conjunction with the Paternity and Adoption Leave Regulations 2002 (S.I. 2002/2788), the Maternity and Adoption Leave (Curtailment of Statutory Rights to Leave) Regulations 2014 (S.I. 2014/[ ]) and the Shared Parental Leave Regulations 2014 (S.I. 2014/[ ]) which they modify.

A separate impact assessment has not been prepared for these Regulations. These Regulations are part of a package of legislative measures and the relevant impact assessment is the Modern Workplaces: shared parental leave and pay administration consultation impact assessment which was published in February 2013. A copy of that impact assessment can be obtained from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, Labour Market Directorate, 1 Victoria Street, London, SW1H 0ET. Copies have also been placed in the libraries of both Houses of Parliament.