Prince William began his new job as a commercial ambulance pilot the last week of March. And when I say “began his new job,” I mean that he still has months of training to officially be flight-ready. But that training is going to have to wait, y’all. Of course it is! Kensington Palace confirms that William has started his unpaid paternity leave today, and he won’t be going back to Bond Air Services until June.
Kate Middleton was expecting to spend the last days of her pregnancy at Kensington Palace while Prince William worked 115 miles away in Norfolk – but she’s been given a happy surprise. The Duke of Cambridge, 32, has started his paternity leave early after completing the first phase of his air ambulance training ahead of time, meaning he can be by The Duchess of Cambridge’s side as she prepares to give birth to her second child.
The Prince, who is training to become an air ambulance helicopter pilot with Bond Air Services in Norfolk, was due to remain at his and the Duchess of Cambridge’s country residence, Amner Hall, in the run up to the birth of their second child. The distance apart meant that if the Duchess went into labor while William was at work, he faced a two hour drive to London.
Originally, the Duchess, 33, who is currently residing at Kensington Palace to be near to St Mary’s Hospital, was expected to remain at the couple’s London home with their first son, Prince George, in the days leading up to her due date. But thanks to some hard work, and some unseasonably pleasant British weather, the future King of England has completed the first phase of his training early, and has embarked on his unpaid paternity leave ahead of schedule.
“The Duke of Cambridge has completed the first phase of his in-work air ambulance helicopter pilot training with Bond Air Services earlier than anticipated,” a Kensington Palace spokesperson tells Us Weekly. “This is due to a combination of The Duke performing well in the various modules and having very good flying conditions that allowed flight training and assessment to progress more quickly than had been planned,” they added.
William will not have to return to Norfolk for the final part of his training until 1st June, as was always planned, following a “period of official royal engagements in late May, details of which will be announced in due course,” the rep continues.
Part of me thinks it’s nice that England encourages such generous paternity leave to all men, even princes. Another part of me thinks that William could have planned out his whole scheme-to-avoid-royal-duty a lot better. After all, William is “donating” his salary to charity, which is difficult to do when you’re on unpaid paternity leave. And it must suck to be in such intensive training for such a difficult job and have to skip out for six weeks. It probably doesn’t matter though – I still say that by this time next year, William will already be “bored” with this job and looking for the next scheme to avoid royal work.
Oh, and Harry is probably going to be around for the birth of his new niece or nephew too – Harry is flying back to England (from Australia) in a few days. Harry is coming back to attend an event for the London Marathon. So… Harry might not be in London for the birth, but he’ll definitely get to meet his niece or nephew if Kate gives birth by the weekend.
Photos courtesy of Fame/Flynet.
I think he’s a total flake off, but I can’t really fault him for wanting to be with his wife for the birth of their child. I would hope my husband would do all he could to be with me then.
Do you really think he would have missed it, even if he had been training? Jason floated the idea last week and watched the PR backlash in the comments section of the DM. Now we get the PR response that William is leaving his training and wouldn’t miss the birth for anything. Bread and circuses.
If he had stayed in training, it would have been a 2 hour drive. As long as her labor lasted more than 2 hours, he wouldn’t have missed the birth. Reports have her in Berkshire, not at Anmer or Kensington.
@Kaiser, he isn’t going to be pilot. He’s going to be co-pilot for X amount of time until he qualifies as pilot. He isn’t first seat.
I worry he is working too hard. He should take another gap year, give himself a rest. He’s earned it.
Second babies can come fast — mine was 45 minutes from start of contractions to baby. I think I asked to be shot when they told me there wasn’t time for an epidural. If my husband hadn’t been there I’d have been even more pissed.
Tanya
They can also come slow.
The only instances I can think of ott that would make a baby come sooner or later that isn’t linked to a medical condition or medical intervention is a Thunder/Snow Storm. Everything else is a unique experience that is in no way linked to another like Boys sit lower or girls kick more.
I didn’t make myself very clear. I meant I would want my husband with me the whole time – when labor started, when I checked into the hospital, all of it. I’ve never had children, but I imagine it would be somewhat scary and it would be reassuring to have my husband with me through all of it. It’s not as if he would have been doing anything anyway. They said he finished his training sooner than expected.
Look, I hear your outrage at his do- nothing mentally and the constant stream of bs coming from his PR department. Very valid. I guess I maybe over romanticize childbirth or something, but in this case, I just don’t personally have a problem with it.
GNAT, I’m just saying that whether or not he was in training or at the Cenotaph, the royal PR would not have allowed him to miss this birth. They floated that idea for sympathy last week and were criticized for it.
He hasn’t been solicitous of her during either of these pregnancies, and has been publicly caught in that behavior. Whether or not he wants to be there, he will be. This article, whether from Jason or the Middleton camp, ensures that.
All true.
No issue with this at all. As long as William spends time with his family. No vacations away on hunting trips. No living elsewhere. He needs to be there for Kate and his children. I’ll snark away if he uses this time to skip out on his family.
GNAT, thanks for your fair-minded post. I’m often critical of William, but cmon, his wife is about to give birth. It’s his duty to be with her right now if he possibly can. Lots of couples can’t be together at this time and I feel for them – but any man who CAN be with the mother of his child at this very late stage in her pregnancy SHOULD be there. And if William wasn’t there, he’d be reamed for it by some of the very same people who call him out for wanting to be with her.
I wonder if Kate is being induced tomorrow. Seems rather abrupt.
OH COME ON.
Thank you! Just so we’re clear, his “work” for his royal duties is walking around and waving at people right? Why is that so hard?
It’s not hard. That’s why their behavior is so insulting to so many people, myself included.
THAN YOU! I couldn’ t say it any better. Kate is not a working mother! To be a working mom you have to have a job , and earning your own living what she is certanly not doing.
+ a million
Please. Let’s not romanticize their relationship. By Kate’s own admission, he was hardly around for the first few months of George’s life. When she went into labor the first time, he was in a bar. They live apart for most of the year. He shows no signs of wanting “to be a dad who is there for his wife and children.”
I also don’t think anyone is faulting Kate for wanting maternity leave…it’s just some of us wonder what she needs leave from? She barely works as it is, so it feels insulting that she then needs to take 6 months off. Would it really be too much for her to work 1-2 hours per week doing easy royal engagements? She’s not a coal miner!
He mother will apparently be living with her (or Kate will be living back with her parents) and she has at least one nanny, so it’s not as if she doesn’t have any help. After PG was born, she was also seen out and about shopping, regularly, so why can she fit that in but not an hour or two of “work.”
+1
These two are just so lazy and boring.
If William does not want to truly be a full time working Royal and plans to spend most of his 30’s and probably 40’s hiding away in the Countryside, avoiding royal work, he needs to give up his position and go live the life of a titled, rich Prince, but give up the position he holds.
He could still have practically the same lifestyle, with less constraints.
LOL!!
I think we should start a sweeps stakes for length of time he will continue this job. Make it exciting by betting on how many holidays coughunpaidleavecough he manages during the same time frame…..
Winner gets bragging rights and something nice from the Baroness.
I’ll start. One year. 9 holidays per usual.
1.5 years, 17 holidays
He’ll stay a year for appearances sake, but if he “works” a year, I’ll be shocked senseless.
My dear Lady LAK,
If one is providing and presenting the award to the winner, that implies one cannot participate!
Now go get me a cup of tea please. and Rodger. I’m quite cross.
Archly,
Baroness b
I don’t think he’ll return to his ‘job’. I betya he’s hating it. Some excuse will be manufactured.
I bet you’re right, hmmm.
I’m in!! 9 months; 7 holidays (+2 if you count the hunting trips that will naturally flow from his work around extinct species or whatever he’s supposedly doing on behalf of the black rhino, et al.)
But I really scale my prediction down to 6 because if they aren’t going to hire additional help, then just like any ordinary modern-day father whose wife is on maternity leave, he’ll have to take paternity leave to stay home to help with the kids. Don’t all couples do that?
Dayum!!!!Six weeks partenity leave,where I am from its 3 days.
Where I am from it’s 14 weeks paternity leave. (With full pay)
PATERNITY?
In the US most women don’t get 14 weeks with full pay for that entire period. =/
@Loopy, yes 14 weeks paternity leave and the mother gets 42 weeks (paid) leave. I am in Scandinavia.
It’s not six weeks for everyone in the UK.
The law gives us TWO weeks of paid paternity leave – ie leave which is in addition to any usual holiday entitlement. You can also go with your partner to TWO ante-natal appointments and take up to six hours off for each one and your employer has to pay you for them.
Some firms let you have more time off unpaid, but by no means all.
The only time employers MUST give more paid paternity leave than the two weeks is when you’re adopting. I think, but am not sure, that then it’s about six months.
Women get 6 weeks at 90% of their pay, £140 a week for 33 weeks, and then the remainder of a year as unpaid leave. Your employer has to keep your job open for you in that time.
In Iceland mothers and fathers are each entitled to five months of non-transferable leave, with an additional two months of shared leave.
Where i’m from men and women can split up for 35 weeks paternity/maternity leave at 55% of their pay (plus whatever top up is provided by their employer, mine gives 6 months at top up to 98%). Women get an additional 17 weeks on top of the 35. You can split it up any way – mom takes 17 weeks, Dad takes 35; Mom takes full 52, etc etc.
Yay Canada! 🙂
(Except if you are unemployed or self employed. Then you are without any benefits. )
Agree – yay Canada! 🙂
You can buy in now if you are self employed – or some people can at least. My husband is technically self employed and if he pays EI he can take pat leave. However, if he opts in he would have to keep paying forever if he takes any benefits, so it doesn’t make sense for him to do so just for a couple paternity leaves.
I wondered what’s happened to the two weeks he was going to be taking.
Little dig from the DM on that in the sidebar (he’ll be paid for those two weeks, then the bit about mothers returning to work).
“The Duke was the first member of the Royal Family to take advantage of statutory paternity leave, which was introduced in the UK in 2003. After the birth of his son George he took two weeks off while working on Anglesey. With his second child due on Saturday William will now be off work until June 1.
Four of those weeks will be unpaid but he will will be paid £139.58-a-week for the other two before returning his air ambulance duties. Under the paternity leave rules, fathers are entitled to two weeks paid paternity leave and up to 26 weeks’ additional paid leave if the child’s mother returns to work. “
Where I am from it is up to 15 months – 12 months at 80% salary and 3 at a lower amount. Each parent must take 2 months (or lose it) and then split the rest as they want and can take use it until the child turns 8.
Lord, he’s not aged well. ….
Yeah, the hair loss really ages him. He looks like Prince Edward’s long lost twin brother.
He’ll probably lose more hair because he’s expected to spend at least a few days with Kate (and her mother).
I wonder where he goes when he leaves Kate and her mother?
Highgrove?
Do you think he’d spend his time with Charles? I’m thinking Wood Farm or friend’s estates both UK and foreign (the Spain hunting preserve).
notasugarhere
I was thinking William is at Highgrove when Charles is away.
Thought it was already the popular theory he was taking up residence at Wood Farm while Kate will be at Anmer long enough to pack up and move to her family.
1 thing we all seem to agree on. William will not be spending much of his time with Kate and his children.
Fairly certain that statutory paternity leave here in England is currently 2 weeks, not 6… So he’s basically having time off, not paternity leave.
That’s what I thought he was doing too.
Texas here. Paternity leave is 2 weeks (paid), maternity leave is 3 months (paid).
In Norway it’s 59 weeks (paid).
In my job there (USA) there is no paid maternity leave and we just secured the right to have 6 weeks unpaid. If your boss is kind you can go longer. Our system is truly awful.
My husband took off 3 days. He works for a small company that doesn’t have a formal paternity leave policy.
In Canada you get a full year, paid for by the government (and if you have good benefits at work, your employer might pay some maternity leave too).
How is his 1st training phase “completed early when” his training was supposed to start last fall? And he already passed his tests months ago in Feb? Wasnt he supposed to be active by now?
He passed the written portion of the training in February. Now he is completing the flying portion.
Wanna bet he spends most of the time out hunting or with his friends? He clearly has no intention of leading a normal life – he just wants a lazy one.
Oh, wow. I wonder how many shortcuts they allowed him in order to finish early. As for how long he’ll last in this job, including training, I’m going to say two years + 15 vacations/unpaid leave.
So is it likely Will and Kate will release a Charles and Diana; in public, in private type documentary two years from now?
Do you not normally wait TIL THE BABY IS ACTUALLY BORN before you take paternity leave? FFS I’m done with this shirker.
Basing on the experiences of my friends and workmates … no. It’s pretty common for the guys to go on leave early. Mostly that’s been because the mother was incapacitated for some reason, but I’ve known a few guys who went early just because they wanted to.
My husband took time off near the end, as he was batsh*t crazy. Kept thinking I was lying in a heap at the bottom of the stairs or in silly TV labour where I was so overcome that I couldn’t phone him. I went to the grocery store, he called the house 5 times then came home, men get silly near your due date too:)
There are instances. Maybe they want to be there the whole time for support. Maybe it’s shaping up to be a difficult delivery. Maybe they’re just “nesting”. Whatever William’s reasons I take no issue with this. As long as he takes this “leave” to be with is family and not be …elsewhere.
“But thanks to some hard work, ”
Seriously? On whose part?
Like Betti says above, he’ll swan off hunting or to Africa with Jecca and his various louche aristo friends – anywhere but at home changing nappies. Kate will be with mummy.
+1
you got it right.
Also quite possible that she’s due to give birth sooner than they half announced and the leave is just designed to be sure he’s already home.
I can’t wait for this to be over.
It seems as if the future king and queen of England have character problems. Either that, or they are two terribly average to low middling people, with few cares, and England just has to live with it.
It’s very strange for an American to see public servants that do not earn their role. It is also strange to see how fawned over these folks are! That could NEVER happen here! Public servants are voted for, which is a very different concept than blue-blood. Jason needs to stop making the mistake that Americans will have respect for these young entitled college graduates, without reason. Having money is not enough, nor babies, and titles are scrap: it’s all just silliness from the past. These folks are actually no different than my neighbors down the way. What a crock!
RobN
We agree. Though if he takes a hunting trip in a week or some other leisure activity while Kate stays with her newborn that isn’t what “paternity leave” is intended for. And for William he can take a vacation anytime.
Would yu agree if he does take a vacation away from his family within 2weeks from now that would be wrong?
Would have to have more facts to agree. Heads off to Greece on a beach trip, totally agree. Takes an overnight trip to play in some sort of charity polo event, like he did soon after a George was born, that I’ve got no problem with.
RobN
I’m not including any charity or work event in this. it would have to be pure leisure. Like his hunting trip was in George’s first months of life. If he makes the choice to be with friends, no work connections, and does not take hold of moments to visit his family is what I get at.
I’d can’t imagine he’d have any reason at all to be away from his wife and children. His schedule is clear. His training is on hold completely. There’s no reason he can’t be there for them living under the same roof and bonding. Although, if there was a charity polo match in Greece and he took an extra day to take in the sites, I would think nothing of that. If he stayed more than a few days… that’s a vacation.
And I hope that is what happens.
Two days ago, BP announced Kate’s due date is April 25. Last public appearance she didn’t look big enough to be as close to to her due date as they would like us to believe. I still believe she will deliver between May 10 to 15. Willy will be MIA for the next 7-10 days hunting or bachelor partying but BP will maintain the ruse that he’s hunkered down nesting with Kate at KP while Kate spends the next 7-10 days at Middleton Manor.
Can’t wait for Victoria Diana Carole to make her appearance!!
Is that what the real mother is calling it?
Oh stop that nonsense.
Conspiracy theorist are you? Please go away.
Yes but the real question is…will he really be with her at KP or lazing around in Yorkshire watching footy
He can’t win. Takes time off to be with his wife when she’s about to have his baby: good for nothing stealing the UK’s money with his laziness. If he’d stayed and hadn’t made it back for his child’s birth: good for nothing who is just like his father who couldn’t be there for his wife.
If he stayed at work, it would have been a two-hour car ride for him to go to the hospital if and when she started going into labor. That would probably have been more than enough time not to miss the baby’s birth.
It’s quicker to fly in his copter, but his PR team said he doesn’t want to use it for that purpose, which now leads me to believe that the complaint about the time to travel was used as a reason to leave ‘work’ early.
Since he has more free time than not, taking time off to be with his wife is an option he has most of time. It’s like it’s just another day. It’s not like this guy is working 40 hours a week plus commute and thus spending 8-10 hours away from his wife because of other commitments.
I read over at DM that while on at-home baby watch, he’s going to be attending a memorial event at the Cenotaph with other Royals, which probably means that if she goes into labor, it’ll still take two hours for him to get to the hospital.
You’ve glossed over the majority of comments here. Many (including myself) are saying there’s nothing wrong with things as they are. No issue with him taking leave. The issue is last time he wasn’t around for his wife and newborn son. When he took breaks from his commitment to his Bespoke program he did not visit his wife and son. He vacationed elsewhere. Many comments are just wondering if he’ll repeat his behavior. Because they claim something as a future plan doesn’t mean it will be followed. The Cambridges and the PR statements regarding future commitments/plans are eggs that shouldn’t be counted before they hatch.
That’s all. Not a lose lose scenerio. That’s an extreme and not valid.
Fake heir is already born-fight amongst yourselves
Can I stay at Anmer Hall while they’re at Kensington? I want to sleep late (snuggled with my honey), have the servants bring us breakfast, and take lengthy strolls through the gardens with my pup while our curious cat explores the palace to her heart’s content. And then we’ll all sit by the fire in the evening.
Why not! I’ll bring the games. We can raid the Wine cellar. Who’s going to stop us? No one lives there!
OMG I forgot about the wine cellar…. just going to waste. FLORC, let’s storm that castle, er, palace, um…hall, and host the biggest CB bash ever!
bettyrose
My eyes just lit up! Such wonderful ideas you have 😀
Most men only get 2 weeks paid leave 🙁 Scandi folk get it so much better!
Okay, Royal snarkers…here’s a must read website – http://www.royalfoibles.com
I found it while doing a little “research” (wasting time) after a commenter on here mentioned something unsavoury to do with a member of the Belgian RF. I needed to know more, and I did. Then I learned more about the Dubai crown prince, the queen mum, Prince Rainer’s mother, etc. down the rabbit hole of Royal Gossip I went. All juicy!
Oh, please. I just want to call it what it is for this guy: Eternity Leave.
Love it!!
LOL! How appropriate!
He was so beautiful when he was young. Kate was chubbier and more plain but now she’s blossomed.
So he’s taking maternity leave to sit in a bar? Lol I hardly think so. My guess is he’s a pretty good Dad compared to his father and grandfather. Probably a good husband as well. They seem like a great couple and Diana would love his wife!
Birth should be about the parents – not the mother and grandmother as what this is turning into. This is the Kate and Carole show.
The petulant prince doesnt appreciate what hes got – when my first baby was born early by c-section my husbands employer sent someone to th hospital 2 days after th birth to check if he was telling the truth – th indignant nhs staff sent him away – thats th way of th world for us lesser mortals – I woudnt mind william so much if he appreciated what he has instead of bemoaning his lifestyle and th privileges it brings.