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The government is fighting to find a way for Justice Minister Helen McEntee to take maternity leave without having to temporarily resign or step aside when her baby is born.
The minister’s baby will be born in May and she intends to take a six-month leave.
Her ad is seen as a hugely positive example for women in leadership and political roles.
However, there is no provision for a politician to take maternity leave, much less a cabinet member in a sensitive portfolio like the justice minister.
Within weeks of Ms McEntee taking maternity leave, urgent discussions are underway to find a solution.
The unprecedented situation has arisen as no minister has had a baby while in office.
Several government sources told the Irish independent Options under consideration include reassigning Ms. McEntee’s duties to other cabinet ministers, or replacing her with a junior minister.
For Ms. McEntee to officially remain in office during her leave would present clear legal difficulties.
But to reassign her duties, the minister would likely have to step aside as justice minister, while remaining cabinet minister.
And to fully replace Ms. McEntee, even temporarily, she would have to resign entirely as justice and cabinet minister.
Discussions are underway to find a solution that does not involve the resignation of Ms McEntee.
However, this solution remains unclear at the moment.
She is one of the highest positions in the Cabinet and one of the key roles under the law is being briefed on urgent security matters by the Garda Commissioner.
But the portfolio also carries a number of other legal obligations that cannot be carried out by another minister.
Legal experts say it must be clear in the eyes of the law that there is a minister of justice, and who specifically is in charge.
On the prospect of Ms McEntee having to resign, a senior government source said: “That will not happen.”
They added: “There may be a scenario where their powers are vested in another minister and junior ministers act.
“That would be a solution.”
But other sources say that all options are still on the table.
A Fine Gael source admitted that it would not look good for the coalition to find itself in a situation where a woman having a baby had to step aside from her ministerial work.
But they recognized that a specific person would be required to take on the role of justice minister.
“Who does Drew Harris call on a Friday night when he hears that a subversive group is planning an operation?”
Taoiseach Micheál Martin, Tánaiste Leo Varadkar, Attorney General Paul Gallagher and Taoiseach Department Secretary General Martin Fraser have been involved in discussions with Ms. McEntee for several weeks to find a satisfactory solution.
A spokesman for the justice minister said: “All is well, Minister McEntee will be taking a period of maternity leave to care for her baby and is working with colleagues in government to finalize how this can be done.”
Irish independent
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