Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)

Does the Minister of State accept that at least one of his predecessors, Deputy Quinn, dealt with the matter when he inaugurated the May Day holiday, the most recent additional public holiday to be created in this country? There are new and evolving pressures on family life in this country and to achieve the objective of the balancing work and family life initiative, which is being promoted strongly by his Department, the Minister of State should open his mind to change in this area. Does the Minister of State not accept that this is not exclusively a matter for others, such as the social partners, to deal with and that it should be part of his agenda to achieve a balance, particularly in light of the fixed school year at primary and secondary level introduced by the Minister for Education and Science, in order that people might spend certain days with their children?

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