Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I appreciate that.

I wish the Leas-Cheann Comhairle well in his new position. It is my first time to speak while he is in charge.

As Chairman of the Oireachtas Select Committee on Justice and Equality which dealt with Committee Stage of the Bill last week, I raised a very important issue. The Minister assured me that my concerns were catered for within the legislation. The Minister undertook, before the full committee, that she would provide written assurance that the issue I raised was provided for within the Bill. On Friday, the deadline for the provision of amendments for Report Stage, I sought that assurance by phoning the Minister. It had not come by that point, and it still has not, despite two further attempts today at the Minister's contact numbers.

I ask the Minister of State, at the outset of the address of the amendments tabled by the Minister, to reiterate her assurance and point out where it is provided for in the legislation that, in the event of a stillbirth, the detail and provisions of the Paternity Leave and Benefit Bill will apply. I am very anxious to know this, given that the Minister of State, in his introduction to the amendments, indicated a list of areas in which it is the case. I am anxious to know with certainty that, in the situation where a stillbirth is the sad and tragic consequence of a full-term pregnancy, the paternity leave applies equally to cases in which the child survives. We will all understand that it is, arguably, a more important time for support for the mother than cases in which the child is safely delivered. I said this last week to the Minister.

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