Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputies for bringing forward this Bill for the provision of 18 weeks' maternity leave for Members of the Houses of the Oireachtas, with an additional eight weeks' leave, if required. As Deputy Rabbitte pointed out, the Bill is not perfect but it will benefit from the discussion that we will have on it. I also echo the sentiment expressed earlier. This is a women's issue and here we are having this debate late at night, which is regrettable. Maybe that was unavoidable. We will have to give the Government the benefit of the doubt for the moment and see how we get on with the passage of this legislation.

When I had my daughter 23 years ago, maternity leave was only ten weeks. Very shortly after my daughter was born, when she was only three weeks old, I went back to college. That was tough but it was not impossible. I benefitted from additional supports for my family because my husband worked full time but cut back to part-time work to facilitate my return to college. It is tricky and anyone who has had a child knows that every pregnancy is different and every child is different. Some children sleep a lot while others hardly sleep at all. Therefore, the needs and the demands are specific.

The job we have does not lend itself very well to family-friendly working hours, unfortunately. I think we should focus on the supports that are available for Members and everybody who works in the Oireachtas complex. I am conscious that when we sit late or run over time as we frequently do, it has a massive effect on everyone who works here, including the people who work in the canteen, the ushers and our own staff who are busy working in our offices. We need to be cognisant of that when we are discussing this issue. We should always strive to be aware that our actions in this House have knock-on consequences for the people who work all around us. This place is well staffed. Members are extremely well served by the staff here. We should appreciate that every late sitting causes a dozen family crises for the people who provide services for us here.

Politics is an arduous and hectic business. We need to show more understanding to families in here. I think this Bill is a good place for us to start the conversation. I would like to draw attention to the problems with childcare in the Oireachtas. The people who provide the childcare do an absolutely fantastic job, but there is a waiting list because of a lack of facilities. As we all know, pregnancy and childbirth are very time-sensitive. When pregnancy or childbirth starts, it cannot be put off until there is a place available. It happens when it happens. We need to look at this issue in the round. I welcome this opportunity to start to have the conversation that we need to have as parliamentarians. We need to draw in all the people who work in the Oireachtas complex because these matters have knock-on effects on them. I commend the Deputies who have introduced this legislation. I look forward to the debate that I hope it sparks.

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