Dáil debates
Thursday, 31 May 2018
Maternity Protection (Members of the Houses of the Oireachtas) Bill 2018: Second Stage [Private Members]
6:25 pm
Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source
I compliment my colleagues, Deputies Rabbitte and Smyth, on introducing this extremely important legislation. It is difficult to comprehend that in 2018, any female Deputy or Senator who has a baby while she is a Member of the Oireachtas has no maternity leave options whatsoever.
The Maternity Protection (Members of the Houses of the Oireachtas) Bill 2018 seeks to address this serious anomaly that obviously applies to a different era in terms of how the Oireachtas operates by providing a practical measure to ensure female participation in the political process. This Bill provides for maternity leave in respect of any female person who is elected to and currently a member of Dáil Éireann and shall include the Cathaoirleach of Dáil Éireann or elected Members of Seanad Éireann.
The importance of maternity leave cannot be underestimated. I stand here today as a mother of three who when my first two children were born was self-employed and, as a result, my maternity leave was extremely short. My third baby was born 12 years ago when I was a PAYE worker. I was entitled to maternity leave and I found the difference unbelievable. There was no sense of guilt, only a feeling that I had 18 weeks to recover, bond and get the baby into a routine. The emotional bond mothers and fathers create during those first weeks after birth is indescribable. One's child is completely dependent on one.
Bunreacht na hÉireann declares that "every citizen without distinction of sex" will be eligible for election to Dáil Éireann. The reality is that there are barriers to that. They were identified as far back as 2009 as the five "Cs", to which my colleagues have just alluded, namely, cash, childcare, confidence, candidate selection and culture. A system that inhibits full participation by more than half of the population cannot be said to be a democratic state in any meaningful way. We have taken small but important steps to confront some of the problems, not least by the introduction of gender quotas. However quotas are not the panacea to the problem of women's under-representation in politics. We hope this Bill goes some way to contribute to the necessary response to some of the other challenges identified.
The case for greater female representation is clear: Greater female representation would improve the quality of political decision-making and would deliver more effective representation for women voters. This Bill seeks to provide a practical measure that will assist in ensuring that women can participate in shaping the collective decisions which bind us all. Politics is far from family-friendly and for anyone with a very young baby it can be extremely difficult. We need reforms that create an Oireachtas where the role and contribution of women is valued, one which will help women see politics as a viable career option. We must move towards discontinuing the practice of all-night debates, which in fairness are rare, and place the focus on more business-like hours. For Deputies who live two to three hours from Leinster House, as Deputies Smyth, Rabbitte and I do - concluding business at 11.15 p.m. does not include the option to return home. For example, on Tuesday of this week we commenced at 2 p.m. and concluded at 11.15 p.m. That is neither family-friendly nor child-friendly. There was no way any of us would then sit in a car and drive two and a half hours home. I know the rationale for the late sitting on Tuesday is to facilitate rural Deputies who must travel but I would much prefer to start at 10 a.m. on Tuesday and finish at 7 p.m. in the evening, which would give the opportunity to return home if one so wished.
This Bill seeks to provide a practical measure that would assist in ensuring that women can participate in shaping the collective decisions which bind us all. I welcome the Bill. I am a mother of three children and my youngest is 12 so, if enacted, the legislation would not affect me but I would like other female Members of the Dáil and Seanad to be able to avail of maternity leave in the event of becoming pregnant. They should not feel any sense of guilt for not being present and fulfilling their duties.
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