Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I compliment the two Deputies for introducing the Bill, which the Labour Party supports. There may well be a need to amend it, to which the Deputies said they are open.

I am surprised at the tone of the Minister's speech. I wonder whether she wrote it herself or had input. I have some experience of being handed scripts but one always tries to put one's own stamp on them. It does not sound to me like Deputy Regina Doherty, judging by her personality and so on, but I do not know. What I do not like about its tone is that it is condescending to women. It is as though we need some kind of paternalistic protection against our spouses, partners and employers but that is not the world in which we live any more. We are equal human beings who can stand up for ourselves. While we want rights, we do not want arms put around us to protect us from the big bad men who will try to push us around and tell us what to do. That is not the reality of the world in which we live.

I am too old to benefit one way or another from any of this but I happen to be a grandmother. I know many young couples who very much share in the parenting of their children and who try to figure out ways to organise their lives in order that they can share responsibilities. That is the way that we, as legislators, should guide social policy rather than saying women will be pushed around or that they will not be given space to be with their children in the early years of life. That is not how we should proceed in public policy. Our policy on the early years of childcare is that parents should have the opportunity for the first year of a child's life to be with the child, through maternity leave, paternity leave and parental leave.

I thank the Deputies for bringing forward this legislation. We are happy to support it and engage in the process, which is what people wanted to hear from the Minister. The response from the Minister of crocodile tears for women treated badly in the workplace, and the campaign she is mounting on behalf of breast-feeding mothers, is all somewhat misguided. The intention of the legislation is clear and its purpose is not what the Minister outlined. Sinn Féin is happy to support it and to work with all parties in the House to ensure the tabling of any necessary amendments, which, it was indicated, would be received gratefully. I remind Deputies that we have until next Thursday. This is good legislation. If it can be approved, we should do it. The intent is clear and I urge everybody to come on board and support it

The flexibility around how that is worked should surely be a matter for the couple themselves. That is the principle of this Bill and therefore it should continue to the next Stage.

I note that Minister spoke of EU law and so on, but I am not sure where that was coming from. If there are specific matters in the Bill that require tidying up, I am sure that Deputies Lisa Chambers and O'Loughlin would be willing to examine those.

There have been positive developments in expanding maternity, paternity and parental leave in recent years. I very much support this and it must continue. There have also been positive developments in childcare in recent years, the cost of which is the big issue for most parents of young children, despite the country's economic difficulties, and that must also continue.

I will not speak for long. I just wanted to express support for the Bill. Something I see from my children and their friends is that people have many different working hours. Some people work shift hours, whether they are in caring professions or the more traditional shift-type jobs, and they juggle their parenting time accordingly, generally in a spirit of co-operation rather than one parent being superior in the workplace and the other superior in the home, which is not and should be how it is.

I express our support for the intent of the Bill and my disappointment in the Minister's contribution.

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