Brian Lenihan Jnr (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)

I am labouring under the difficulty that I did not hear the Senator's original contribution. I have taken such advice as I can concerning her initial contribution but I am afraid that some of the matters may have to be revisited on Committee Stage. As regards paid leave pre-placement, however, the 1995 Act, as amended, currently provides for 14 weeks' adoptive leave, attracting a payment from the Department of Social and Family Affairs, and an optional unpaid eight weeks' additional adoptive leave.

In the context of consultations with former members of the maternity working group on the amendment of the 1995 Act, consideration was given to a proposal to provide for paid adoptive leave prior to the date of placement. However, the proposal was rejected, as providing paid leave prior to the day of placement, even if it were confined to adopting mothers or sole male adopters, could weaken the legal basis of the adoptive leave legislation. A European Court of Justice decision in 1983 on proceedings between the European Commission and Italy, determined that confining adoptive leave to women and not to men, in the period following placement of the child, did not contravene the equal treatment directive. The view of the court was that confining adoptive leave to women in the period following the day of placement was justified by the legitimate concern to assimilate as far as possible the conditions of entry of the child into the adopting family to those of the arrival of a new-born child in the family.

In order to ensure that the maternity and adoptive leave provisions treat natural and adopting fathers and mothers equitably, there are therefore no plans to provide for that paid leave pre-placement of adoption.

I will have to revisit the issue of the detailed periods on Committee Stage.