Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I thank all the Deputies for their contributions and their assurance of support for both the core legislation and the two sets of amendments that we will seek to bring forward next week.

In terms of the process, the amendments on NDAs relating to private records will be printed by the Bills Office tomorrow and will be available for full view. Next Wednesday we will have the opportunity to discuss them in full detail on Committee and Remaining Stages

A number of Deputies raised the issue of the scope of the right to seek a deferral of maternity leave. Of course, the Leave our Leave campaign was originally focused on the issue of women who had a cancer diagnosis during maternity leave. They number between 60 and 70 women per year. It is a small number but, obviously, for those women, it has an absolutely enormous impact. However, in designing this legislation, we did not want to solely reserve the provision to women who had cancer; we wanted to include the issue of serious illness. For me, it was important that serious illness included mental illnesses as well because too often mental illnesses have been put to the side and maybe not given the same degree of seriousness or prominence as physical health issues. Mental health issues, defined by a inpatient stay, are protected within this legislation and are a basis for maternity leave being deferred. I have taken account of the issue that IBEC raised and we are working with officials to see what can be done in terms of the discrimination concern that it has there. We will work to see if there can be an answer or resolution brought to that particular point.

Deputy Whitmore, when she was in the Chamber, raised the issue of the process, in particular, where a woman is seeking deferral of her maternity leave and wants to defer it further, whether there can be changes. There can be changes. The return date can be changed once during the period. Someone can decide to extend her deferral to the full 52 weeks or for a longer period than she originally agreed and that is provided for within the legislation. There is flexibility there. That is valuable and important.

In terms of the approach to the private records, the legislation will allow for the Director of the National Archives to make a request to a holder of private records to provide a catalogue of the records that private holder has.

They have a three-month period within which to provide that catalogue. There is a provision for an extension for that period as well. If someone refuses to provide a catalogue of records, that is an offence under the legislation, as is damaging, falsifying or bringing those records out of the country. That is also an offence. It is the traditional offence, I think of six months' imprisonment on indictment or, in the fuller sense, up to three years' imprisonment or a fine of €50,000, or both. It is the usual criminal offences provided for in those situations. There are not compulsion powers under this legislation. We discussed it yesterday with some of the academics. There is recognition that in the context of the national centre for research and remembrance, there will need to be further legislation about the ownership of records. That is recognised as one that will entail a balancing of constitutional and GDPR rights. I certainly believe the State should be taking ownership of a large proportion of records but what we are seeking to do today is protect what is there, to make sure records that do exist are protected and everyone is very clear about the consequences of efforts, deliberately or inadvertently, to damage, falsify or interfere with those particular records. We are making that change to the law on an interim and rapid basis to make sure that protection exists.

It is worth saying, though, that there have been consequences to similar legislation in Northern Ireland and since similar protection provisions, not compulsion of handing over but simply protection provisions, were put in place in Northern Ireland, thousands of pieces of records in private hands have been handed over to the State. We would be hopeful that this new obligation that is placed on private record holders will prompt them to hand information over to the State, even in advance of subsequent legislation that may require compulsion. There is provision under the National Archives Act for the National Archives to take receipt of documentation that is handed over to it. Indeed, under the birth information and tracing legislation, there are some powers in place in terms of protection of the destruction of records and the birth information and tracing legislation has prompted private record holders. There is one particular set of private records that has been handed over to the Adoption Authority of Ireland. That is now in its safekeeping. The legislation we have already passed is having an impact on private records. I believe this legislation will have an impact on private records. There will be a discussion, potentially in the next Dáil, on wider measures about the ownership and indeed the potential eventual seizing of some private records.

A Leas-Cheann Comhairle, you mentioned the collaborative forum report not being published. It was published in full in November 2022. I might ask my office to send you over the copy.

To conclude, I want to say that this legislation is importance. Its importance is demonstrated by the speed at which we are hoping to bring it through the Houses of the Oireachtas. I appreciate the forbearance and support of Deputies and Senators in doing so. In the last four and a half years, I have brought significant legislative items through this House, on which we have had lengthy debates in pre-legislative scrutiny and on Committee and Report Stages. Members will agree on the importance of ensuring we have a legislative provision that allows women who become seriously ill during their maternity leave to defer it. The Leas-Cheann Comhairle spoke about the long period over which there have been attempts to legislate for maternity leave for Oireachtas Members. It will be good when we leave this Dáil to feel that we finally achieved that, and delivered on this key entitlement to female Members of these Houses that they can avail of maternity leave. There is the work we are bringing forward on NDAs and restricting their use in circumstances where someone has been harassed, bullied, sexually harassed or has been the victim of discrimination within their workplace, and finally the piece on private records to make absolutely sure we can protect them wherever they are and seek an understanding of the scope of these records. These are all important steps that are worthy of the truncated legislative process we are bringing through. I thank Deputies for their support on these measures.

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