Grace Boland (Dublin Fingal West, Fine Gael)
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2386. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the way in which her Department encourages the take-up of statutory leave for fathers; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [42166/25]

Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Solidarity)
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2404. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality her views on extending the current rate of paternity leave from two weeks to four weeks; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [42406/25]

Grace Boland (Dublin Fingal West, Fine Gael)
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2409. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the steps being taken to address and mitigate against the impact of the motherhood penalty on women in the workplace, particularly in relation to: income inequality and pay progression, barriers to promotion and career development, access to affordable childcare and flexible working arrangements, and measures to support women returning to the workforce after maternity leave; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [42539/25]

Grace Boland (Dublin Fingal West, Fine Gael)
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2410. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality to outline any cross-departmental efforts underway to tackle the structural contributors to the motherhood penalty; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [42542/25]

Grace Boland (Dublin Fingal West, Fine Gael)
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2414. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the measures being considered to promote more equitable sharing of childcare responsibilities between parents; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [42549/25]

Barry Heneghan (Dublin Bay North, Independent)
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2512. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if she will consider extending paid maternity leave or increasing parents' leave as an interim measure to support working families with infants under one year-of-age, given the current gap in childcare availability for this age group; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [44191/25]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 2386, 2404, 2409, 2410, 2414 and 2512 together.

Significant improvements have been made in the entitlements to both paid and unpaid leaves in recent years.

The Maternity Protection Act 1994 and the Maternity Protection (Amendment) Act 2004 provide a pregnant employee with 26 weeks of paid maternity leave and an additional 16 weeks of unpaid leave, alongside other entitlements such as breastfeeding breaks after the return to work, which have been extended to two years following the birth of the child through the Work Life Balance and Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2023. Furthermore, since 20 November 2024, employees can postpone their maternity leave if they require ongoing treatment for a serious health condition as set out in the Maternity Protection, Employment Equality and Preservation of Certain Records Act 2024.

Under the Parent’s Leave and Benefit Act 2019, working parents are now entitled to nine weeks of paid parent's leave for each relevant parent, to be taken in the first two years after the birth or adoptive placement of a child. Parent's Leave is an individual separate entitlement and is non-transferable between parents.

Under the Parental Leave (Amendment) Act 2019, an employee who is a relevant parent in respect of a child under the age 12 is entitled to 26 weeks’ unpaid parental leave for each child. Where a child has a disability or long-term illness, the entitlement can continue until the child is 16. A relevant parent is a parent, an adoptive parent, or a person acting in ‘loco parentis’.

The Parental Leave (Amendment) Act 2019 also raised the maximum age limit of the eligible child for which parental leave can be taken from 8 years to 12 years. Both parents have an equal, separate entitlement to parental leave.

The Work Life Balance and Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2023 was enacted on 4 April 2023, and introduces important entitlements for workers, including leave for medical care purposes for parents of children under 12, and the right to request flexible working for parents and carers. It transposes the Work-Life Balance Directive which specifically prevents the transfer of paid leave between parents in the interests of gender equality and of encouraging fathers as well as mothers to take such leave.

Family leave provisions are kept under review to ensure that they are effective and respond to the needs of families and also mindful of the impact of the leaves on workplaces. The Programme for Government sets out a commitment to examine the possible extension of parent's leave and benefit and additional flexibilities. Presently, the next National Strategy for Women and Girls is in development and will consider ways to support working families to balance caring responsibilities with careers.