The European Council spent over ten years (from 1983 to 1994) debating a proposal for a directive on parental leave only to be thwarted by the British government's veto. In 1994, the Commission was left with no alternative but to take a new initiative on the basis of the Social Protocol. The Directive was adopted in June 1996, following the agreement negotiated between ETUC, UNICE and CEEP.

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