Three months paid and three months unpaid leave will become available from April 2011.
At the moment, mothers can take nine months of paid maternity leave and three months unpaid. Under the plans, the second six months could be transferred to the father if the mother returns to work.
The paternity leave will be paid at £123.06 a week, the same as statutory maternity pay.
Adrienne Burgess, head of research at the Fatherhood Institute, called it a 'small step towards recognising the workings of modern families, where both parents work, fathers want to be more engaged with children, and mothers may earn more than their partner'.
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