An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business
Dail Éireann — 2022-06-21
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Jennifer Carroll MacNeill (FG), Dún Laoghaire

We all wish the Minister for Justice, Deputy McEntee, well with her very good news. Of course, she is not the only female Member to have had a baby in the lifetime of this Dáil. Indeed, a number of men have had babies in their families during the period of this Dáil. It is a useful opportunity to remind us we have made no practical advance in maternity provision for Members of the Oireachtas who may have babies. A Bill was passed on Second Stage and I thank the Government for its engagement with that. It is a recommendation of the Forum on a Family Friendly and Inclusive Parliament, and part of the work of the gender equality committee, to have a referendum on remote or proxy voting in limited circumstances, which would include maternity and potentially paternity provision. I ask the Taoiseach to indicate his support for this measure and indicate the lead Department in order that we might follow up on a practical basis for the future. Is it the Taoiseach's Department? It is surely not a matter of equality but one of the administration of politics more generally, rather than being hived off to the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2022-06-21/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:50:39+00:00
Sitting date: 2022-06-21