Ms Frances Byrne:

On our comment about the right to fully paid parental leave in the first year, it was a caveat about families who may have pre-existing challenges before a baby is born and, as we all know, families can face challenges of all kinds after a baby has been born. In the context of a wrap-around family support service, the absolute gold standard should be that parents would be supported to stay at home in order that one parent would be at home all the time minding the child in the first year of life. We absolutely agree with that, but additional supports may be needed for a variety of reasons that, as I said, may be pre-existing or may arise during the first year. We suggest there be a recognition of that, part of which could relate to expert, high-quality early years care and education, even in the first year, as a family support intervention. In our recommendations as a society and our understanding of that, we should be inclusive in our thinking about that.