Marie Moloney (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I did not intend speaking on the Bill but sitting here and listening to the debate, I found it very interesting. I commend Senator White for bringing this Bill forward. It is amazing that in all the years in which Government and the Oireachtas has been dominated by men, it takes a woman to look for paternity leave. Well done to Senator White for that.

We cannot overestimate the importance of the father. I recall an experience I had with my first child. I came home on a Thursday with the baby and my husband collected me and stayed off work from Thursday to Sunday. On Monday morning, he was going out to work and the baby started crying. I started crying and I did not know which one of us was worse. My poor husband did not know what to do. He had to ring work to see if he could stay at home for the day. It shows how coping with a small child can be demanding. Many people get post-natal depression and it is quite horrific to go through. I am not saying I went through it but I know women who suffered badly from it. Some even ended up in hospital. I can see the importance of having someone there to support one. I know one's family can but one is calling them all the time. If one's partner or spouse is there to help one, nothing can beat that.

Senator White would like to share leave so that while the father was at home, the mother would work. Having the father in the home to help even during the few days when one comes home from hospital is very important. Like others, I have reservations about some aspects of the Bill but we can thrash them out as we go forward on Committee Stage. Obviously, the financing of it is one issue. Given the climate we are in, who will pay for paternity leave? Will it be the employer or the State? Will the father take over the maternity benefit? Will he have contributions? There are a range of technical issues that must be sorted out but the sentiment and idea are good. I commend Senator White for bringing it forward. In fairness, the Minister is not shelving it or turning it down. He has agreed to look into and tweak it. It has the makings of a good Bill and will reflect well on Senator White because she brought it forward.

I deal, as do all of us, with young women who are in one-parent family set-ups. In some cases, they really do not want any connection with the father of their child and the father is fighting for his right to be associated with the child and to have his name on the child's birth certificate. I worry that if this is introduced into law, the father would have a right to take paternity leave and the mother would have to let him take over.