Gary Gannon (Dublin Central, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

My contribution will be brief and focus on the final point raised by Deputy Whitmore, which is seeking parity for the children of one-parent families. They are entitled to the exact same time at home as those in any other family dynamic. Consistently in society, one-parent families are the most vulnerable at-risk group. They are at risk of economic disadvantage and all of the crushing human aspects that go with poverty. There is much of merit in the Bill but the most disappointing aspect of it is that it will not impact fairly on all children. If we were taking a child-centred approach to the Bill, which we should do, the children of one-parent families would be treated in the exact same manner as other children. By that I mean they should have the exact same entitlement to time at home with a parent. The fact that is not being provided is beyond lamentable. That is the case for a number of reasons as it punishes children in a family situation that are already at greatest risk. I understand it is a difficult issue and there are complications in this regard, but if we are taking a child-centred approach to the Bill then the children of one-parent families need to have the exact same time at home with a parent as any other children.

We also introduced an amendment to make provision for a parent to apply for a maximum of ten weeks parental leave in the case where one parent is unable to care for a child due to severe illness, hospitalisation or incarceration for at least 104 weeks. That would be a massive bonus to one-parent families who are already living with great economic difficulties.

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