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JUSTICE MINISTER HELEN McEntee will take six months paid maternity leave from 30 April.
Speaking in the Dáil this afternoon, the Taoiseach announced that the government would facilitate the minister’s maternity leave.
Minister McEntee will become a minister without a portfolio, and Minister Heather Humphreys will temporarily hold the position of Minister for Justice as well as her existing role.
Hildegard Naughten, the super junior minister, will take on some justice duties as well as her existing junior responsibilities.
McEntee will become the first Cabinet minister to give birth while in office. The baby is due in May. The minister previously stated that she intended to take six months’ leave.
Due to public office holders not being entitled to maternity leave, previous politicians who have become mothers have claimed sick leave when they take time off to have and look after their newborn baby.
The Taoiseach said: “We have agreed an approach which upholds the core principles of equality, while also operating within the current legal framework, which is based on completely outdated assumptions and attitudes in this area.
“Minister McEntee will, therefore, take paid maternity leave from her role as Minister for Justice for a period of 6 months with effect from April 30th. She will remain a Member of the Government, without portfolio, for that period.
“Finally, I believe that this illustrates once more the absolute requirement for permanent reform in this area to ensure full equality for all public representatives and the need to introduce maternity and paternity leave for councillors, Senators, TDs, and Ministers.
“We want to make sure that having a family is in no way in conflict with pursuing a career in public life.
“That will require legislative change, or possibly constitutional change.”
In a statement, McEntee said: “Just as girls of my generation looked to the strong women who came before us for inspiration and guidance, those of us in politics now have a responsibility to make it easier for today’s girls to fulfil those dreams and ambitions.
“I and my colleagues in Government are determined to change the current system for the next generation. I welcome the fact that the Citizen’s Assembly on Gender Equality is considering the question of maternity, paternity and other types of leave for public representatives.
While I am very thankful to all my colleagues for their help and co-operation in accommodating me, it is clear that the lack of provision for maternity, paternity and other types of leave for those in public life is an issue that needs a long term solution.
I look forward to working with colleagues across politics to bring about these much needed changes.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin said earlier this week that the government was committed to facilitating McEntee taking maternity leave “and to not have to resign”.
He said he believes that facilitating the minister taking maternity leave “will be a catalyst for wider change and reforms”.
Speaking at an event this week, McEntee said she is not the first female politician to have a baby, and she won’t be the last.
She said it was frustrating that though women had gone before her, nothing within the system had changed.
McEntee said it is not about telling women that they should take maternity leave, but more about providing choice for women.
If “breaking down barriers” is important and if encouraging women into politics is to be done, then it is about facilitating women to have a family and continue in their career in politics, she said.
She said she hoped her situation would “bring about change” for all female politicians, whether they are ministers, TDs or local councillors.
With reporting from Sean Murray
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Politicians and governments write the laws that enable this so stop trying to pass the buck. Wonder will Dobbo host the annual tax avoidance conference again this year that took place in a hotel in Malahide last year.
@Dick Durkin: It appears that the multi nationals are writing the tax laws and passing them on to goverments to pass legislation.
@Joe Brennan: The establishment political classes here in Ireland and elsewhere are merely the puppets for the Illuminati, the Elites, Multinational corporations, Bankers and the rest of the vested interests that effectively rule the World. A Rothchild said give me control of the money supply, and i do not care who is running the country sums it up.
@James Doyle: yep they all have secret meetings planning new schemes for not paying taxes.. just think of bertie in the pub..
@James Doyle: Enough with the illuminati tripe, that was a secret cabal that operated in the 18th century. Move on. There is the likes of the Bilderberg group, Council of Foreign relations, trilateral commission and many think tanks that can be related to the hidden hand that has always ruled this world.
@Michael Heery: de drumcondra Mafia
No only is this a deeply hollow attack from Fianna Fail, who allowed and promoted tax evasion/avoidance supportive policies whilst in power, their own TDs were found to be tax evading!
Michael Collins, Denis Foley, Charles Haughey, Ray Burke, and many more never named.
Beverley Cooper-Flynn sold tax avoidance accounts to customers for National Irish Bank for crying out loud.
Ansbacher anyone?
@No Mauvaise Foi❄: hypocrite was the first thing that sprang to mind for me as well.
@No Mauvaise Foi❄: oh that was the Old ff .. they not like that anymore aaahhh
@No Mauvaise Foi❄: A member of the FG. who’s father had an ansbacher account. but before falling off a cliff. he had changed his will a few days before.
@No Mauvaise Foi❄: fianna fail make the mafia look like choirboys
“We spend a lot of time in this House talking about the health crisis, about 3,000 children in homeless accommodation – it is all connected.”…..To Fianna Fail bankrupting the country. There, I fixed it for you.
The thing is…
If someone says, well you could do this and pay a little less tax, we would all do it.
If Haughey paid his fair share of taxes or if Albert Reynolds didn’t bail out his Beef Barron pals with Taxpayers money….
@Ruairi Gagarin: Michale Lowery , DOB and plenty of FGers in same both pal .
@Irish Bob: Damn right, but it’s the taxpayers who gets shafted each time – not the time and place for Civil War whataboutery
Hilarious from the party of Haughey Burke and Bertie,
Neither of which had a tax Clearance cert!
How many tax breaks to the rich and famous did FF introduce during their time in office. Hypocrite.
@Paul Fahey: A Fianna Fail TD a hypocrite?! Never! I am shocked!
@Paul Fahey: McCreevey in particular was a favourite messenger boy for them. They bought him a tent and he stuck it up in Galway. I know where I’d stick his tent.
Then off to Brussels where nobody could understand a word out of him. They even got special interpreters for him but no good.
@Paul Fahey: he is without sin etc…..ever bought anything over the internet and not paid the tax? Gone on holidays to the states and bought a few gifts and not declared them going back through the airport?
@Mary Murphy: why is no governments putting any Tax on internet purchases?
So what he’s saying is that it’s his job to pass legislation, and the legislation isn’t very good. Hmm, what could we do about this situation?
I notice he is going after “Famous” people but says nothing about the rich people who are not famous, but who stay under the radar, and make hefty political contributions to Fianna Fail, the party of the Failed Economy.
But No Politician ever starved.
Put calling the kettle black
Du h ! This McGrath bloke is a genius. Bet no one ever realised that! Maybe he should look at the history of his failed Party
Genius, the man’s a genius….
@Horses for Courses: Could be because he wears rose tinted glasses lol.
If they (TDs( stopped raiding the pension pot (amongst other things) before their retirement age of ?65-?67… this too would go a long way to helping!!
When these politicians make big mistakes and they have to go looking for more money, it’s only the ordinary people will suffer!
How can he even keep a straight face saying this when FF largely created, facilitated and cheerled the whole scam. In fact I would even say they pioneered it. Think Haughey, Reynolds, Goodman, Ahern, etc. etc. etc. Hypocrisy of the highest order!!
I give Michael McGrath a lot of praise for making that statement with a straight face. Michael you would urgently need to see a doctor, your memory loss is frightening.
Taxes are only for the poor
FF and FG both have facilitated widespread tax avoidance. It makes no sense to distinguish between them. Both parties serve and preserve the interests of the super wealthy.
@Fiona deFreyne: there is nothing wrong with tax avoidance.
@Living The Laws:
Tax avoidance is not against the letter of the law but it is against the spirit of the law. What this means is that by avoiding paying tax the rich can benefit from everything that is paid for by ordinary taxpayers without contributing their fair share. If they did pay tax at the same rate as the rest of us the Government would have more money in the coffers to build social housing, shorten hospital waiting lists etc.,etc., etc., But what happens , poor people are labeled as been lazy and a drain on the taxpayer .
Robbing the poor to pay the rich comes to mind.
@Living The Laws: your proberly one of them
U2′s new single
When your tax is so good
The pain in your face doesn’t show
When your tax is so good
and baby you don’t even know
When the world is ours
But tax is not your kind of thing
Full of shooting stars
Brighter as they’re vanishing
Oh you’ve seen enough to know rock stars who shouldn’t preach
We are still free enough to wake up on million dollar bed on a beach.
You’re the best tax and its free
The best thing that ever happened a boy
You’re the best tax and its free
Its the kind of bubble that I enjoy
You’re the best tax and its free
The best things are easy to destroy
You’re the best tax and its free
” The World is Broken, BONO ( PAY YOUR TAX and )make it Better”.
The top 5% of earners pay 25% of tax. Surely tax should be capped? Why should one person pay 1000 times the tax of one middle class person? Wouldn’t that be fair? Anyway does anyone seriously think if the rich paid more, they’d pay less?
News flash, it’s always the ordinary people who suffer with taxes, not the Fianna Gale elite and their buddies.
@Lobert Rester: Aren’t most of them landlords anyway???
@Lobert Rester:
FF try present themselves as *ordinary. In a brazen attempt to ingratiate themselves with the poor Irish sods who are beasts of burden carrying elite/corruption on one hand & on the other paying for housing for immigrants. Irish with no home, I note, are just homeless.
Our worker’s rights, living standards are being eroded. We aren’t coping so well with 4.7 million here. Over a million residents not indigenous Irish, and the Irish forced to emigrate, another almost 100k Irish reportedly emigrating over the past year. This is not a fun choice, but generally due to inability to afford or find housing here, even to rent. Emigrating like the poor times of old, housing unavailability is a high consideration in the decision for Irish leaving. We have already a whole generation of Irish in Australia & Canada, whole communities & GAA teams abroad, OUR loss.
The population replacement and tax/welfare system aren’t serving Irish people. There is certainly an agenda at play, there is a very obvious policy that has *ordinary Irish people on the back foot in our own country.
Collecting taxes, planning correct use of the monies collected & cracking down on corruption is what’s required. Past performance for high personal yields for FG & FF politicians who reap while we show, shows us what to expect from these parties. It’s high time for change.
Hilarious, Fianna Fail make ordinary people suffer every time they’re handed power. Shower of gangsters.
FF,FG, set things up nicely for the wealthy.
@@mdmak33: It’s the same everywhere, it is what runs the EU…
@Alois Irlmaier: your correct but it going to take some time for the Irish people to cop on, it took them many years to wake up to ff, in another few years they will wake up to fg.
Michael you and FF built your party protecting the wealthy and even today you back FG every time some party has a motion against the wealthy so go away and do something positive with your time.
Next thing you know Michael will be telling us he and his FF party will be getting rid of Irish Water…….Oh wait. http://postimg.org/image/g525lw01t/
Truthfully spoken Michael, now when ye get into government properly chase them down
What about the big expenses you all receive. Wood you ever give it a rest F/F you wrote the text books on avoidance. Some shower. BERT, COWAN MARTIN NEED I GO ON.
Lego hair on him
FF Bxxtard. you guys facilitated this in the first place..
..
remember Ansbacher etc…
ordinary tax payers should take a class action against the Irish State and Revenue Commisioners for not doing it’s job.
we will start with the €13Bn owed to us
Bono and his charity work, we all know now what his favourite charity is lol.
The only people who contribute in society in terms of paying taxes are the middle class. The upper classes nor the lower classes contribute to tax. Being educated meaning going to school and attending third level education in order to live a “good life” is the biggest lie we have been told.
Financially werr better odd dropping out of school at 16 ; get a girl pregnant will automatically get a house worth 2 or 300.000. Will never have to work because of the generous welfare system.
The middle class who contribute significantly to society receive minimum income and get screwed over every time
So by that quotes rationale…. if you are not famous you are ordinary… so if you are famous you are suddenly extraordinary???? Drives me demented… like the constant reference to “the ordinary man on the street” in questions to politicians…. the question is often posed by someone who got a handy number in RTE on account of who his mother was to a politician who was elected on account of where their grandparents were in 1916!!!!
Ordinary people as opposed to poor people wouldnt want to alienate the middle classes!
Solution: make the methods they use to avoid paying taxes illegal. They’re not breaking any laws… they apparently feel no sense of duty to their country or their community… but that’s legal (no matter how hypocritical it is of Bono, especially)
@Lobert Rester:
FF try present themselves as *ordinary. In a brazen attempt to ingratiate themselves with the poor Irish sods who are beasts of burden carrying elite/corruption on one hand & on the other paying for housing for immigrants. Irish with no home, I note, are just homeless.
Our worker’s rights, living standards are being eroded. We aren’t coping so well with 4.7 million here. Over a million residents not indigenous Irish, and the Irish forced to emigrate, another almost 100k Irish reportedly emigrating over the past year. This is not a fun choice, but generally due to inability to afford or find housing here, even to rent. Emigrating like the poor times of old, housing unavailability is a high consideration in the decision for Irish leaving. We have already a whole generation of Irish in Australia & Canada, whole communities & GAA teams abroad, OUR loss.
The population replacement and tax/welfare system aren’t serving Irish people. There is certainly an agenda at play, there is a very obvious policy that has *ordinary Irish people on the back foot in our own country.
Collecting taxes, planning correct use of the monies collected & cracking down on corruption is what’s required. Past performance for high personal yields for FG & FF politicians who reap while we sow, shows us what to expect from these parties. It’s high time for change.
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