Only six weeks after Mattis Johan (6 months) was born, mother Marte Vilkensen Brøvig was partially back at work.
– Now I work 40 percent. Both because I love my job, but also to be able to be on leave longer. I think many mothers find it demanding to only get a seven-month maternity leave, she says.
The mother of three from Bergen has a management position in Equinor, and is concerned about how rigid the current leave schemes are.
– The most important thing for me and my family is freedom of choice. I do not understand that politicians should decide who, and for how long, me and my husband should be on leave.
Will reverse the division
Vilkensen Brøvig is particularly interested in cash benefits and the three-part parental leave.
– I do not know anyone who thinks the triad is a good arrangement, she says.
– Marte Vilkensen Brøvig has chosen different leave schemes for all three children. – Children are different, families must decide for themselves what suits them best, she says.
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She is supported by KrF leader and Minister for Children and Families Kjell Ingolf Ropstad, who will now be the guarantor of the cash support and reverse the three-part parental leave.
– It is not the state that knows what is best for the individual family. That is what the parents do, he says.
Requires cash support
For KrF’s heart child – the cash support – hangs in the balance.
– In a very thin thread … And if there is a change of government this autumn, I fear for the freedom of choice for the families, Ropstad says.
There is currently no majority in the Storting to keep the cash support. Only KrF, Frp, MDG and Sp want to continue the scheme.
– The Minister for Children and Families, Kjell Ingolf Ropstad, guarantees that parents like Marte Vilkensen Brøvig will receive cash support as long as KrF is in government.
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And at the national meeting of the Conservatives in May, The majority also decided to scrap the cash subsidy and rather introduce waiting support for families waiting for a daycare place.
– The right will too abolish the scheme. Can KrF sit in a government that scraps the cash subsidy?
– No, I do not think KrF can sit in a government that scraps the cash support, Rostad says to TV 2.
Must be a guarantor
– This is a core issue. It is about freedom of choice for families to decide for themselves. Therefore, KrF must be the guarantor of the cash support. Whether you choose it, or a safe and good kindergarten place, says Ropstad.
– Is this a signal to Erna Solberg that you can not cooperate with the Conservatives, if they touch on cash support?
– Yes, this is a very clear signal to Erna Solberg. But I think she knows very well where she has KrF in this case.
Will give less to dad
The Minister for Children and Families will also reverse the current three-part leave scheme, where mother and father receive 15 weeks’ leave each, while 16 weeks are optional and can be distributed as the families wish.
– In six months, Mattis Johan will be 1 year old. Mamma Marte hopes that the cash support will continue, so that the family can be a little more at home.
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This means that the mother can only take around seven months’ leave with 100 per cent pay, before she has to return to work.
KrF wants to increase the total leave pot, but give five weeks less to the father and make these optional.
– Does not it give the father fewer rights in connection with birth?
– No. It will still be a dedicated leave for father, but a larger optional part, says Ropstad.
– Kjell Ingolf Ropstad will reverse the three-part parental leave as it is today.
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Bad for equality
Vilkensen Brøvig believes that the three-part leave does not contribute to equality, but emphasizes that it is important that the father takes his share of the parental leave.
– Today, there is more stigmatization around fathers who choose not to take the paperwork, than there is around those who take it, she says.
– But now it is the case that it is the woman who gets pregnant, breastfeeds and perhaps has a greater need to be longer with the child. Then many choose to stay at home, and miss out on salaries and pension points. It is anything but equality.
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