Council Directive 97/75/EC of 15 December 1997 amending and extending, to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Directive 96/34/EC on the framework agreement on parental leave concluded by UNICE, CEEP and the ETUC
Date: 1997-12-15
Institutions: Council of the European Union
Subjects: Northern Ireland, United Kingdom, family policy, framework agreement, national implementing measure, parental leave

L 10/24

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EN

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Official Journal of the European Communities

16. 1. 98

COUNCIL DIRECTIVE 97/75/EC

of 15 December 1997

amending and extending, to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern
Ireland, Directive 96/34/EC on the framework agreement on parental leave
concluded by UNICE, CEEP and the ETUC

opportunities and treatment at work, and the reconcilia-
tion of working and family life;

Whereas the adoption of this Directive will make Dir-
ective 96/34/EC applicable in the United Kingdom;
whereas, from the date on which this Directive enters into
force, the term ‘Member States’ in Directive 96/34/EC
should be construed as including the United Kingdom,

HAS ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE:

Article 1

Without prejudice to Article 2, Directive 96/34/EC shall
apply to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and
Northern Ireland.

Article 2

The following paragraph shall be inserted in Article 2 of
Directive 96/34/EC:

As

regards

‘1a.
the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Northern Ireland, the date of 3 June 1998
in paragraph 1 shall be replaced by 15 December
1999.’

Article 3

This Directive is addressed to the Member States.

Done at Brussels, 15 December 1997.

For the Council

The President

J.-C. JUNCKER

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community, and in particular Article 100 thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission (1),

Having regard to the opinion of
liament (2),

the European Par-

Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social
Committee (3),

Whereas the Council, acting in accordance with the
Agreement on social policy annexed to Protocol 14 to the
thereof, adopted
Treaty, and in particular Article 4(2)
Directive 96/34/EC (4); whereas, as a result, the said Dir-
ective does not apply to the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Northern Ireland;

Whereas the Amsterdam European Council, held on 16
and 17 June 1997, noted with approval the agreement of
the Intergovernmental Conference to incorporate the
Agreement on social policy in the Treaty and also noted
that a means had to be found to give legal effect to the
the United Kingdom of Great Britain and
wish of
Northern Ireland to accept the Directives already adopted
on the basis of that Agreement before the signature of the
Amsterdam Treaty; whereas
to
achieve this aim by extending Directive 96/34/EC to the
United Kingdom;

this Directive seeks

Whereas the fact that Directive 96/34/EC is not applic-
able in the United Kingdom directly affects the func-
tioning of the internal market; whereas implementation of
the framework agreement annexed to the said Directive
reconciliation of
and,
the principle of
in particular,
parental and professional
for working
parents, in all the Member States will improve the func-
tioning of the internal market;

responsibilities

Whereas implementation of
the framework agreement
aims, in particular, at achieving the objective of equal
treatment between men and women with regard to labour

(1) OJ C 335, 6. 11. 1997.
(2) OJ C 371, 8. 12. 1997.
(3) OJ C 355, 21. 11. 1997.
(4) OJ L 145, 19. 6. 1996, p. 4.