Arthur Morgan (Louth, Sinn Fein)

I move amendment No. 7:

In page 4, line 40, to delete "8" and substitute "26".

I am proposing that a parent, if he or she so chooses, should be allowed to spend the first year of a child's life with him or her. Expert opinion — like many Ministers — supports my view. This amendment is not some madness for the sake of having a run at a Minister or a Department in order to score political points; it is attempting to achieve an arrangement that is better for the child and, in turn, for society. This arrangement of 26 weeks is already in place in the North. I ask that the same principle be applied in the South. All Deputies are only too familiar with the child care crisis. This proposal would be one element in enhancing efforts to deal with that crisis, particularly if people were able to spend time with their children in the first year. I hope the Minister of State will accept the amendment.

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