Frank Fahey (Galway West, Fianna Fail)

The Parental Leave (Amendment) Bill will allow fathers to take parental leave after the child has been adopted. It is not possible to accede to the Deputy's request at this time, as we want to maintain the link, parity and equality between maternity and adoptive leave.

Unlike certain other countries, we do not have paternity leave here. This issue and a number of other amendments are the subject of agreement between the social partners. The social partnership negotiations will start soon and the question of changes may arise. However, these would need to be agreed in the first instance by the social partners. It would not be appropriate for me to make changes to legislation without those changes being the subject of agreement between the social partners.

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