Sorca Clarke
Ceist:284. Deputy Sorca Clarke asked the Minister for Social Protection the estimated full year cost in 2025 of extending parental leave and benefit by three weeks for mothers and five weeks for fathers. [37834/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraTuesday, 24 September 2024
Ceisteanna (284)
Freagraí scríofa
Parental Leave allows both parents to take 26 weeks unpaid leave for each eligible child up to their twelfth birthday, or their sixteenth birthday if the child has a disability or long-term illness. My colleague the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth holds responsibility for Parental Leave.
There is a separate scheme called Parent's Leave which is also the responsibility of Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth; there is an associated benefit payment for which I have responsibility. Parent’s Benefit is a payment for employed people, who are on Parent’s Leave from work, and self-employed people who satisfy certain PRSI contribution conditions.
Parent's Leave and Benefit are available to all eligible parents of children born or adopted from 1 November 2019 and must be availed of within the first two years of the child’s life or adoption. Parent’s Benefit is paid at €274 per week - the same rate as Maternity, Paternity and Adoptive Benefits.
In Budget 2024 I provided for the number of weeks of Parent's Leave and Benefit available to each eligible parent to be increased from seven weeks to nine weeks. This increase took effect from August 2024.
Nine weeks Parent’s Leave and Benefit is not transferable between parents which is in line with the provision of the EU Work Life Balance Directive. This recognises the importance of equality between men and women with regard to labour market opportunities and the equal importance of men and fathers in bringing up their children.
The estimated full-year cost of increasing Parent's Benefit by a further three weeks for mothers and for a further five weeks for fathers is approximately €54 million.
This is based on the estimated number of recipients in 2024. It should be noted that these costings are subject to change in the context of emerging trends and associated revision of the estimated numbers of recipients. There would be further additional costs to the Exchequer as these estimates do not include the costs for staff substitution which might arise in the Civil and Public Sector which would be a matter for the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform.
Any decision regarding an extension of Parent's Leave would be a matter for my colleague, the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth. Decisions around the extension of the associated benefit would have to be considered in a budgetary context.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.