[dchesterton]

That’s not accurate on quite a few counts.

- University is definitely not free, at least in England. Fees are £9k per year. Interest rates are high and you don’t have to pay it back unless you earn over a certain amount so in reality, it’s more like a graduate tax for many, but it’s definitely not free.

- Childcare is limited to a few free days a week, often has extras to be paid for and is otherwise very expensive. For those on higher incomes that’s reduced too.

- 52 weeks parental leave is for the mother only and is only at statutory pay after 6 weeks (about £150 per week). Paternity leave is 2 weeks at statutory pay.

- 6 weeks of holiday is not normal. Normal would be about 4 weeks.

- The state pension is £185 per week. Nearly everybody contributes a decent amount to a private pension too.

[nerdawson]

> 52 weeks parental leave is for the mother only and is only at statutory pay after 6 weeks (about £150 per week). Paternity leave is 2 weeks at statutory pay.

It used to be that mothers were entitled to maternity leave which broke down as: - 6 weeks at 90% of your average pay - 33 weeks of statutory maternity pay (£156/wk) - 13 weeks unpaid

Now parents can opt for shared parental leave, effectively sharing that time off entitlement: https://www.gov.uk/shared-parental-leave-and-pay

[Moissanite]

> Normal would be about 4 weeks

The legal minimum is 20 days plus 8 public holidays. I don't know anyone in a white collar job who gets fewer than 25 (+8) days off, and in the public sector 30 seems to be the low end.