A senior Conservative MP said stay-at-home mothers were “understated” by the government’s efforts to get parents back to work, and women’s “natural parenting role” said it should be evaluated.
Former environment secretary George Eustis said the government put too much emphasis on encouraging women to go back to work rather than insisting on staying home with their children. Guardian.
Eustis said the term “stay-at-home mom” is now “used almost as a derogatory term.”
“We should respect the choices that women make,” he said, noting that women should be encouraged to stay home to foster an innate bond with their children.
“Many women want to spend their first few years with their children,” she says. We should cherish it.”
He added: [motherhood and fatherhood] we have to be honest about it.
“Of course, fathers have a very strong paternal desire to spend time with their children, but there is no escape from the way we are biologically connected and the maternal instinct is strong. is.
“In general, mothers in particular want to spend that time with their young children when possible.”
His comments were criticized for being “outdated” and not addressing issues that mean women can’t make the choices they want.
“George Eustis’ comments are completely outdated and insulting to modern families who aspire to have fathers at the center of their children’s lives,” said Adrian Burgess, CEO of the Fatherhood Institute. person said.
“Studies show that the ‘paternal instinct’ is as powerful as ‘maternal’ when paternal care is acknowledged and supported.”
Dr. Anna Machin, a leading evolutionary anthropologist and author, adds: It is the lack of social, cultural and especially governmental support that prevents it. “
Eustis accused Hunt of pushing Britain’s economic growth over the protection of family units, and said the “constant pursuit of GDP” was a “somewhat artificial” measure of growth.
He is one of the Tory MPs calling on the Prime Minister to change the tax system to allow stay-at-home parents to transfer more tax credits to their working partners.
