Ms Carol Baxter:

I extend my condolences to the Senator. As Deputy Cronin said, the 24 weeks has tended to link to the whole area of viability. The new Civil Registration (Electronic Registration) Bill, introduced on 18 April, considers that viability can now more properly be applied at 23 weeks, with, as Deputy Cronin said, a birth weight of 400 g. That is what is behind that legislation. There is another amendment that links it in with the Maternity Protection Act. Developments and viability would enable any changes to be made and to align with subsequent maternity protection legislation. That is the intention in the legislation. As Deputy Cronin has said, our Department is looking at the whole area of pregnancy loss more broadly. That is why we have commissioned the research from University College Cork, UCC, which is looking at leave and the whole area of how a workplace can become more supportive, how people can, for instance, have the right to work online and have a flexible return, and how training can be provided for managers around supporting people. It is also considering the potential for some form of broader awareness within the workplace and wider society. It is looking at the whole area of pregnancy loss, miscarriage and how to support people in the workplace and more broadly, in the round.