Clare Daly (Dublin Fingal, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The superiority of amendment No. 39 is linked to three things. It eliminates the gaps that exist in the others, it starts with the premise of three hours, which is totally in line with the recommendations of the University of Limerick as a minimum that anyone should get, and it deals with the fact that the gaps in the Government's bands are way too big. The Minister is effectively allowing for a scenario in which somebody could have a drop in income of some 33%, which would be a massive drop in weekly income and would create havoc, as it does at the moment for a load of people, especially those who need to factor in childcare.