I thank the Deputies for raising this issue. I welcome the opportunity to come before the House to discuss this important subject. The emotional impact of pregnancy loss is absolutely tremendous. Unfortunately, it is experienced by many. There has been a very welcome move in society towards greater openness about miscarriage and pregnancy loss and the heartbreak it can bring to women and families. I am thankful that we are all moving on from a time when such trauma had to be shouldered in silence. It is, however, v…

We will certainly examine and consider the statutory element. As Deputy Higgins alluded to, we have acted to enhance rights and protections for families, particularly for women, through the parental leave extension about which she spoke and ongoing work to implement legislation on the gender pay gap, through the proposals we are examining with regard to extending breaks for breastfeeding and by introducing, for the first time, paid domestic violence leave. The Government therefore has a strong track record in recog…

I am pleased to engage with Deputies on this significant legislation. I acknowledge the work done by the former Minister of State, Deputy Stanton, in bringing the Bill this far. I thank Deputy Funchion for her amendments, which seek to provide for a gender breakdown of information on various categories of employees. However, I have real concerns that providing that type of breakdown may lead to individual employees being easily identifiable within workplaces, particularly smaller workplaces. The amendments would po…

We absolutely accept there is a gender pay gap. That is why we are bringing forward this legislation. There is no question about that. The most recent EUROSTAT figures indicate it is 14.4% in Ireland. That is not acceptable and these provisions are designed to address it. We all accept that the Bill will not solve everything but it will, for the first time, provide for a structured and steady flow of information on what is happening in individual employers. To clarify, I am not at all suggesting that the Deputy's a…

I thank Deputies for their support for the legislation. I agree with Deputy Funchion's comments on the very significant distance the Houses of the Oireachtas have to go towards a family-friendly and particularly a gender-friendly system of work. To refer specifically to Deputy Funchion's proposed amendment, it seeks to delete the words "if any" in respect of the publication of reasons in the employer's opinion for any gaps and of the measures, if any, that an employer is taking or proposes to take to eliminate or r…

I understand why the Deputy is trying to expand the reach of this legislation and the speed at which it will apply. However, it is important for the House to recognise the reasons it is designed in this way. The incremental application of the reporting requirement is deliberate and is based on consultations that were undertaken with both unions and employer representative groups. There was significant engagement across an 18-month period. There were written submissions, a symposium and then direct engagement with t…

I understand the Deputy's intent to ensure that the reporting requirement is as far-reaching as possible. However, it is important to note that no other specific class of employer, other than by reference to its size, is specifically referred to in the Bill. The Bill instead provides at section 2 for the insertion of a new section 20A into the Employment Equality Act 1998 and that under subsection 4(a) the regulations may prescribe the classes of employer to which the regulations apply. It is the intention that the…

I move amendment No. 11: In page 5, to delete lines 29 to 35 and substitute the following: “(6) (a) Regulations made under this section may require the employer to publish information in respect of a public body. (b) In this subsection— ‘Act of 1998’ means the Education Act 1998; ‘Act of 2014’ means the Companies Act 2014; ‘board’ has the same meaning as it has in the Act of 1998; ‘company’ means a company formed and registered under the Act of 2014 or an existing company within the meaning of that Act; ‘education …

I move amendment No. 13: In page 7, to delete lines 29 to 37, to delete page 8, and, in page 9, to delete lines 1 to 35 and substitute the following: “ “Application to Circuit Court or High Court in case of failure to comply with regulations made under section 20A 85B. (1) Subject to subsection (3), where the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission is satisfied that it has reasonable grounds for believing that there has been a failure by a person (in this section referred to as the ‘person concerned’) to comply …

I am of the view that the strengthening which we have just agreed to under amendment No. 13, by giving those extra powers to IHREC to take a case to the High Court, where IHREC believes the seriousness and the egregiousness, perhaps, of the breach of the legislation of these reporting provisions by a particular employer warrants going to the High Court and warrants that very significant sanction, both legally and from the point of view of publicity, in the form of a ruling of contempt of court by the High Court, is…

I move amendment No. 16: In page 10, line 15, to delete “5th anniversary” and substitute “4th anniversary”. I was able earlier to refer briefly to this amendment. It reduces the time period within which a review and report of this legislation will be undertaken. It is set currently at five years. I propose to reduce that to four years. We have to strike a balance here between vigorously reviewing new and innovative legislation to ascertain whether it is working and delivering on its stated purpose, which, in this c…

I am pleased to be here in the Seanad to speak to this important motion. I thank Senator Seery Kearney for bringing it forward and I thank all the Senators for their contributions. A wide range of issues has been raised, some of which fall directly within my Department's remit while others are within the remit of my Cabinet colleagues. I will try to address as many as I can in the time allowed. While it has always been the case that our young people should be supported and have their potential and contribution reco…

I thank the Senator for raising this important issue. I might just speak broadly about the national childcare scheme before addressing the Senator's specific points. The national childcare scheme is built on the basis families are supported in accessing early learning and childcare based on need. The manner in which the needs of families are addressed is progressive and ensures that those who have the least income receive the highest hourly subsidies. In this way, we target our resources at those most in need. More…

I am very much aware of the concerns that have been raised by providers, particularly in areas of great disadvantage, on some elements of the implementation of the scheme and particularly on the after school-issue. I have met providers, including from the Senator's local area with Senator Fitzpatrick, which is why I have outlined the three elements I am dealing with including, in the immediate term, broadening out access to sponsorship. The information on sponsorship has not got out well this year, primarily due to…

I will share time with my colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Joe O'Brien. We will have seven and a half minutes each. As a country, we pride ourselves on being welcoming, kind and empathetic. Our own history of emigration gives us an understanding of the pain of leaving one's own country and the difficulties and challenges of settling elsewhere. As a people, we want to extend a welcome and a shelter to those coming here fleeing violence and war. Over the past two decades there has been an outpouring of empath…

I thank all the Deputies for their detailed contributions to this important debate. Deputy Connolly listed out the range of individuals and groups that have contributed to the knowledge we have as an Oireachtas and a Government about the failures of direct provision. She is correct to acknowledge the work of the likes of Mr. Justice McMahon and his group, the previous Committee on Justice and Equality that launched its report, and all of those who worked on Catherine Day's group. I hope what will be different this …

I am sharing time with Deputy Costello. I am pleased to support this very progressive and important law, which is so badly needed and has for so long been campaigned for by many in this country, particularly young people. I wanted to take this opportunity to speak about the positive elements of the legislation but I need to respond to some of the outlandish actions of Deputies in the Chamber. I recognise that every Deputy has a mandate and is entitled to be listened to with respect, but we have to understand that t…

I thank the Deputy for raising this point. He has engaged with me directly about this and I have issued a response. It is an important point. As we work towards the full transposition of the work-life balance directive, we will have to continue to look at the position regarding carer's leave. It is covered under Article 6 of the directive, which provides for five days of annual carer's leave for workers providing personal care or support to a relative or person living in the same household. As the Deputy said, it i…

I thank the Deputies for bringing forward these two amendments, which are very similar. While I understand the intention of the Deputies in proposing that we provide a report on a review of this legislation within a year, I do not consider that to be the best approach. I do not agree that these amendments offer the best way to proceed and I will try to explain why that is the case. The first issue is the proposal for a further extension of leave and the requirement to report on how that is being progressed. I have …

We are being proactive in bringing in the three-week provision this year and in extending it out to the first two years of birth. This extension is to recognise the difficulties new parents have had during the Covid crisis and the lack of traditional supports, be they immediate family supports or the wider societal supports that families normally seek to avail of. We have demonstrated a proactive approach in terms of the amount we have granted this year and the context in which we are granting it. There are other p…