The Secretary of State shall make regulations entitling an employee who satisfies specified conditions—
as to duration of employment, and
as to having, or expecting to have, responsibility for a child,
to be absent from work on parental leave for the purpose of caring for a child.
The regulations shall include provision for determining—
the extent of an employee's entitlement to parental leave in respect of a child;
when parental leave may be taken.
Provision under subsection (2)(a) shall secure that where an employee is entitled to parental leave in respect of a child he is entitled to a period or total period of leave of at least three months; but this subsection is without prejudice to any provision which may be made by the regulations for cases in which—
a person ceases to satisfy conditions under subsection (1);
an entitlement to parental leave is transferred.
Provision under subsection (2)(b) may, in particular, refer to—
a child's age, or
a specified period of time starting from a specified event.
Regulations under subsection (1) may—
specify things which are, or are not, to be taken as done for the purpose of caring for a child;
require parental leave to be taken as a single period of absence in all cases or in specified cases;
require parental leave to be taken as a series of periods of absence in all cases or in specified cases;
require all or specified parts of a period of parental leave to be taken at or by specified times;
make provision about the postponement by an employer of a period of parental leave which an employee wishes to take;
specify a minimum or maximum period of absence which may be taken as part of a period of parental leave.
specify a maximum aggregate of periods of parental leave which may be taken during a specified period of time.