Campaigners are calling on the Government to extend paid paternity leave from two to six weeks in the UK after research found it could reduce the gender pay gap. A report from the Centre for Progressive Policy think tank (CPP) and charity Pregnant Then Screwed (PTS) analysed Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) data to explore the economic and health impacts of extending the statutory entitlement to paternity leave and pay. It shows that countries with more than six weeks of paid paternity leave have a 4.0% smaller gender wage gap and 3.7% smaller labour force participation gap – the proportion of men and women in the workforce. The analysis also suggests that closing gender employment gaps in all UK authorities would increase economic output by £23 billion. We have the worst paternity benefit in Europe which is negatively impacting children, gender equality and the economy Joeli Brearley, Pregnant Then Screwed It comes as the UK has the least generous paternity leave entitlement in Europe with a statutory entitlement of two weeks and pay of £172 a week, which is 44% of the national living wage. The researchers also looked at PTS data from 1,735 mothers and 1,805 fathers, finding that just 18% of prospective parents say they or their partner could afford to take six weeks of paternity leave at the current statutory rate of pay. However, this changed to 57% if the leave was paid at 90% of their income, as statutory maternity pay is for women. The analysis also suggests that for 20% of fathers, no parental leave options were available to them following the birth or adoption of their child. The organisations further commissioned a YouGov pool, which found that 65% of mothers with children under the age of 12 thought increasing paid paternity leave would have a positive impact on mothers’ readiness to return to work while 83% thought it would have a positive impact on mothers’ mental health. Campaigners from CPP and PTS are now urging ministers to extend the statutory leave entitlement, to pay it at 90% of income in line with currently statutory maternity pay and to ensure paternity leave is available to all working fathers and partners. They are also calling for the Government to enhance existing maternity rights to reduce financial hardship, the gender employment gap, and the gender pay gap. Joeli Brearley, chief executive and founder of Pregnant Then Screwed, said: “We finally have evidence that boosting paternity leave will reduce the gender pay gap, improve the health of both parents and it will benefit the economy. “Paternity leave is not a luxury but a necessity.” Rosie Fogden, head of research and analysis at CPP said: “While long-held societal norms about gendered parenting roles are shifting, the UK’s parental leave system has not kept pace. “As our findings show, it is still very difficult for many fathers and second parents to be able to afford to take leave when their children are born, and this has serious consequences for both parents’ mental health.” Ms Brearley added: “If our next Government wants to set out a positive vision for the future, then thriving families must be central to their campaign. “We have the worst paternity benefit in Europe which is negatively impacting children, gender equality and the economy. “We are calling on the government to increase the length of non-transferrable paternity leave to a minimum of six weeks at 90% of income, in line with current statutory maternity pay.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live My teenager gets all their news from TikTok – should I worry? How to take care of pets in the heat Struggling with menopause symptoms in the heat? An expert shares tips

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Jonnie Irwin has revealed that he sometimes “removes himself” from his family home to go to a hospice while he continues to live with terminal cancer. The A Place in the Sun presenter, 49, first went public with his diagnosis of lung cancer last year after discovering the disease had spread to his brain. He currently lives with his wife, Jessica Holmes, and their three children, Rex, three, and twins Rafa and Cormac, two. However, Irwin admitted that sometimes the pain he experiences makes him “not good to be around”. Speaking to Hello! magazine, the TV host said: “I remove myself on a number of occasions because I’m not good to be around when I’m in pain. “I’m like a bear with a sore head and I don’t want [my family] to be around that.” Irwin has previously spoken candidly about how the pain his illness causes affects his moods. Speaking on the podcast OneChat last month, he said: “I have been close to death’s door, twice at least. “You lose your memory, you lose your patience. I have got a very short temper. It’s not made me a better person, that’s for sure.” This week, Irwin also opened up about why he hasn’t yet told his sons about his terminal cancer. He said it would be difficult for them to understand the situation due to their young age. “I keep being asked, ‘Are you going to tell them?’ but tell them what?” he said. “It would be horrible news that they’d have to get their heads around. And it would confuse the hell out of Rex – he’s got a shocking enough day coming. Let’s bury our heads in the sand for as long as possible.” After publicly revealing his condition, the Escape to the Country host said he was worried that his children will not remember him if he died last year because they’re “too young”. He told The Sun: “Every time something really nice happens with them, I have this thing knocking at my door, saying, ‘Don’t get too happy because you’re not going to be around much longer’. “Then I think, they’re not going to remember me, they’re really not. They’re too young and if I die this year, there’s no chance they will have memories.” In early June, Irwin was admitted to hospital to be “monitored” due to a “changeover in my pain management regime”. Read More Thirty, flirty and declining: How 30 became a terrifying milestone for an anxious generation Woman who went from size 18 to size six shares surprising things ‘no one tells you’ about weight loss Vegan family writes letter to neighbours requesting they close their windows when cooking meat Jonnie Irwin ‘removes himself’ from family home amid terminal cancer battle Jonnie Irwin explains why he hasn’t told his sons about his terminal cancer A Place In The Sun’s Jonnie Irwin admitted to hospital amid terminal diagnosis

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Vanderpump Rules alum Stassi Schroeder has admitted she wants to “try” taking Ozempic after giving birth to her second child. The former reality star, 34, recently appeared on Alex Cooper’s Call Her Daddy podcast, where she spoke candidly about wanting to take the type 2 diabetes medication – which has often been prescribed as an “off-label” weight loss drug. “Oh, my God, I really want to try it when I give birth,” the Next Level Basic author told Cooper during Wednesday’s podcast episode. “The amount of times I’ve researched this being like, I mean, I think it’s safe and healthy. Like, I think it’s good for you. It’s like taking vitamins.” The Call Her Daddy host told listeners that “nothing that was said on this podcast” should be taken as serious medical advice,as she jokingly added: “Please do not listen to this.” Schroeder went on to explain why she’s curious about taking the once-weekly semaglutide injection, which works by mimicking a hormone that regulates appetite and creates the feeling of fullness, once she welcomes baby number two. “[After] my first pregnancy, I ate bone broth for dinner for six f***ing months after I gave birth, and I kind of don’t feel like doing that again. Like, I don’t want to,” she said. The Off With My Head author shares two-year-old daughter Hartford with husband Beau Clark. In March, Schroeder announced the couple were expecting a baby boy due in September. Much like Amy Schumer, Schroeder also called on fellow celebrities to be “transparent” and “honest” about some of the methods they take to lose weight. “Anyone who hears about Ozempic has to f***ing be curious,” she said during the podcast. “You are a liar if you tell me that you have not thought about it, thought about jumping on that train.” “Have I Googled Ozempic and what it would be like, and am I thinking about it? Yes, I am.” This week, actor and comedian Amy Schumer admitted to taking Ozempic last year to help lose weight. However, Schumer stopped taking the FDA-approved medication because of its side effects. “I was one of those people that felt so sick and couldn’t play with my son,” Schumer told host Andy Cohen on Watch What Happens Live. “I was so skinny and he’s throwing a ball at me and [I couldn’t].” Although the Trainwreck star ultimately decided that Ozempic wasn’t “livable” for her, she did take a moment to call out celebrities who have been “lying” about taking the once-weekly antidiabetic injection for weight loss. “Everyone’s like: ‘Smaller portions,’” she joked. “Shut the f*** up. You’re on Ozempic, or one of those things.” Ozempic has skyrocketed in use after people were reportedly prescribed the type 2 diabetes medication as an “off-label” weight loss drug. Due to its weight loss side effects, the increased demand has sparked a global shortage of Ozempic, leaving actual diabetics without the medication. While Ozempic is used for the treatment of diabetes, popular drugs like Wegovy and Moujaro are similar once-weekly semaglutide injections specifically approved for the treatment of obesity and weight loss. Last month, Stassi Schroeder’s former Vanderpump Rules co-star Brittany Cartwright shut down speculation that she lost weight by taking Ozempic. Fans began speculating that Cartwright was using the type 2 diabetes medication after she shared a selfie to her 1.6m Instagram followers, in which the reality star posed in a mirror wearing cycling shorts and a baggy T-shirt. “Totally ozempic,” one person claimed, as others remarked that it looked like Cartwright had “lost weight”. Cartwright then addressed the rumours directly, clarifying that the reason she may look slimmer is because of the iPhone camera setting she used to take the picture. “It’s actually the .5 zoom on the iPhone camera lol,” she wrote in the comments. Fellow Bravo personality and Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Crystal Kung Minkoff has also said that although she hasn’t taken the drug, she has been tempted and “thought about it”. Read More Amy Schumer says she stopped taking Ozempic because of side-effects What is ‘Ozempic face’? Doctors warn about facial ageing side effect of diabetes medications Vanderpump Rules star Brittany Cartwright addresses rumours she’s taking Ozempic for weight loss Mother reveals ‘one regret’ after parent refused to give her child cake amid debate My teenager gets all their news from TikTok – should I worry? Jonnie Irwin ‘removes himself’ from family home amid terminal cancer battle

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A mother has revealed the “one regret” she had after a parent refused to give her daughter a slice of cake. The parent, Kat Stickler, shared a follow-up video amid the now-viral debate about how her child joined a birthday party in a park. In her initial video – which has more than 13.7m views so far – Stickler said that a parent grabbed a plate from her daughter, MK, while she was on line for cake at the park. The woman allegedly told the three-year-old that she couldn’t eat the dessert, and that other kids at the party were “not her friends”. In her most recent clip, Stickler addressed how people had been reaching out to her, before sharing the one thing that she wished she did differently in the situation. “I wanted to take full responsibility for the fact that I should have gotten to MK faster,” she said, referring to when her daughter was waiting to get cake at the party. “That’s my one regret. That I did not get to her before she could grab the plate.” Stickler noted that her issue was “not with this person” who didn’t let “[her] kid have cake”. “She wasn’t invited to the birthday party. She had just met these kids,” she explained. “I get that, don’t give her cake.” The mother then explained that the main problem she had was with the way that the parent spoke to MK. “It’s getting down to a level and telling a three-year-old girl that those aren’t your friends,” she said. “It was cruel, unnecessarily, in my opinion. Like just tell her she can’t have cake, OK.” She added: “We don’t have to share our cake, but we should be nice to three-year-old kids.” As of 14 June, the follow-up video has more than 2.4m views, as TikTok users in the comments questioned people who didn’t understand that Stickler initially had a problem with the stranger’s remark to MK. “The fact that this wasn’t immediately clear to everyone from the beginning is CRAZY to me!!! #itwasneveraboutthecake,” one wrote, while another agreed: “Imagine needing to explain this to full adults….” @katstickler Also thank you all so much for all the love, support, and cake you’ve sent 🥰😂🎂🍰🧁 ♬ original sound - Kat A third wrote: “Actually, the ONLY thing that mom should have said to MK is, ‘Please ask your mommy if it’s ok.’ In case of allergies.” Other people noted that they still would’ve given MK cake at the party, despite the fact that she wasn’t invited in the first place. “Idk… I would’ve gave her a piece of cake just because that’s how I grew up. If we had enough we gave, always,” one wrote. “Sure but also I’ve never been to a party where there wasn’t half a cake left after everyone already had what they wanted,” another added. In her initial video posted last week, Stickler sparked a viral debate when she revealed that MK introduced herself to a group of children at a party in a park. “She’s one of the group right now. They’re welcoming her with open arms,” she said. “Or, so I thought.” As MK joined the line of kids getting cake, Stickler said that she decided to follow her “to make sure it’s OK, as a formality”. “Honestly, I was like, obviously it’s OK. It’s cake. It’s a massive cake. There’s lots of leftover pieces,” she explained. @katstickler No cake for me thanks, I’m full…of rage👹 ♬ original sound - Kat However, Stickler then shared that the party host stepped in and stopped her daughter. “The mother takes the plate away from MK, and gets down to her level, says: ‘You cannot eat this cake, OK. This is not your birthday party. These are not your friends. Where’s your mother?’” Speaking to Today last week, Stickler noted that after this situation happened, she took her child to get ice cream. She also said that MK was “totally fine” after hearing the parent’s comment. “People have been asking me, ‘What did you say to the mom?’ The mom was literally the least of my concerns,” she explained. “I was worried about MK.” The Independent has contacted a representative for Stickler for comment. Read More Mother hit with deluge of abuse for taking toddler’s packed lunch to a restaurant Mother sparks viral debate for ‘shaming’ parent who refused to give her daughter a slice of cake Mother and six daughters wear their wedding dresses out to dinner: ‘Yearly tradition’ Mother sparks debate over parent who wouldn’t give daughter cake Drew Barrymore slams tabloids that claimed she ‘wished’ her mother was dead Drew Barrymore speaks out about parents and how she financially supports her mother

Tom Hanks has starred in some of the most iconic films of all time, but he passed up the opportunity to star in a certain 1989 classic because of a personal matter, according to wife Rita Wilson.