Kathleen Funchion (Carlow-Kilkenny, Sinn Fein)
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Apologies have been received from Senators Lynn Ruane and Seery Kearney. In today's meeting, we will resume our scrutiny of the Organisation of Working Time (Domestic Violence Leave) Bill 2020. This is a Private Members' Bill sponsored by Deputies Mary Lou McDonald and Louise O'Reilly. We are joined, from the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, by Ms Carol Baxter, assistant secretary, and Ms Jane Ann Duffy, principal officer. We also joined by representatives of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, ICTU, Mr. David Joyce, equality officer, and Ms Mandy La Combre, senior industrial relations officer of the Financial Services Union. From NUI Galway, we have Dr. Nata Duvvury, director at the Centre for Global Women's Studies. I welcome our witnesses and thank them for attending. We invited representatives of the Irish Business and Employers Confederation, IBEC. However, due to other diary commitments, they were not in a position to attend.

I remind those joining us remotely that the chat function on MS Teams should only be used to make the team on-site aware of any technical issues or urgent matters that may arise and should not be used to make general comments or statements during the meeting. I also remind members of the constitutional requirement that they must be physically present within the confines of the Leinster House complex in order to participate in public meetings. I will not permit a member to participate if he or she is not adhering to that constitutional requirement. Any member who attempts to participate from outside the precincts will be asked to leave the meeting. In this regard, I ask any member participating via MS Teams to confirm, prior to making his or her contribution to the meeting, that he or she is on the grounds of the Leinster House complex.

In advance of inviting witnesses to deliver their opening statements, I wish to advise them of the following in regard to parliamentary privilege. Witnesses who are participating from the committee room are reminded of the long-standing parliamentary practice that they should not criticise or make charges against any person or entity by name or in such a way as to make him, her or it identifiable, or otherwise engage in speech that might be regarded as damaging to the good name of the person or entity. Therefore, if their statements are potentially defamatory in relation to an identifiable person or entity, they will be directed to discontinue their remarks. It is imperative that they comply with any such direction. For witnesses who are appearing virtually before the committee, there is uncertainty as to whether parliamentary privilege applies to their evidence if given outside of the parliamentary precincts of Leinster House. Therefore, if directed by me to cease giving evidence in relation to a particular matter, it is imperative that they comply with any such direction.

The format of the meeting will comprise three opening statements. Each witness has five minutes and we ask witnesses to adhere to that timeframe in as far as possible. We will start with Ms Baxter, followed by Mr. Joyce and Dr. Duvvury.