Arthur Morgan (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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Question 457: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the amount it would cost annually to provide paid paternity leave for two weeks at a flat rate of 60% of the average industrial wage. [19466/08]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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No costs of the kind sought by the Deputy are available at present. My Department, however, is examining the issue of paternity leave as part of an overall review of maternity, parental and paternity leave as promised in the Agreed Programme for Government and the Social Partnership agreement "Towards 2016". Costings in relation to the provision of paid paternity leave will, no doubt, be prepared as part of this review. This review will be conducted by my Department with input from other relevant Government Departments and from the social partners. The issue of the introduction of a statutory entitlement to paternity leave was examined before, in 2002, by a Working Group, membership of which included Government Departments and the Social Partners, as part of the Review of the Parental Leave Act 1998. The Working Group could not reach consensus on the issue.