Labour plans to offer three months’ parental leave

Labour will vow to extend the entitlement to paid parental leave to three months in their general election manifesto.

The Irish Times has learned the junior Coalition party will pledge to introduce this entitlement on a phased basis.

The manifesto will allow for a total of three months’ paid leave by 2021 and will allow for it to be shared between mother and father.

The paid parental leave would be in addition to maternity benefit and to the two weeks’ paternity benefit announced in the budget.

A Labour source said: “Making childcare affordable will be one of the key election platforms for the party.

“It would mean when maternity benefit has concluded that there would be an option of having additional time to spend with your child.

“The Labour proposal would allow that to be shared by both parents once the maternity leave is finished.”

The parental leave is aimed at encouraging mothers to re-enter the workforce and to allow for fathers to take time off if desired.

New charge for high earners

Minister for Social Protection and Tánaiste Joan Burton introduced the two weeks’ paid paternity leave in last month’s budget. Mothers can also avail of up to eight months’ maternity benefit.

Speaking yesterday, Ms Burton also confirmed her party was in favour of a new charge for high earners.

Fine Gael has proposed the introduction of an income levy targeted at workers earning €100,000. This would compensate for the abolition of the universal social charge for all workers.

The Tánaiste said those “privileged enough to have an income of €100,000” should contribute proportionally more in taxation.

She said: “We have a very progressive tax system and I would certainly welcome indications from any of the parties that we should maintain that and that we should focus tax reform particularly on low- and middle- income people.

“We also have to build up a solid and sound tax base so we don’t run into problems in the future of bust and boom. If people are privileged to earn high incomes then I think it makes sense for everybody they contribute proportionally more.”

Leak deplored

Ms Burton also deplored the leak of internal Labour party analysis which claimed the party could lose up to 20 seats.

The Irish Times published the contents of the analysis last week and TDs have accused the party's deputy leader, Minister for the Environment Alan Kelly, of putting the information into the public domain.

Ms Burton fully backed Mr Kelly and criticised the person who leaked the analysis.

She said: “I have been talking to Alan and he, like everybody else, absolutely deplores whoever was responsible for doing that. It is difficult to know the motivation of whoever was doing that. I don’t know if it is a single source or whether it is a number of sources.

“It is difficult to make out what their motivation was because they certainly weren’t helping themselves and they were not focusing on getting Labour re-elected.”

The Labour Party figures warned the party could return with between 10 and 16 TDs at the next general election, compared with the 37 seats it won in 2011.

A report this weekend suggested Mr Kelly had been accused by TDs and Senators of leaking the information.

Mr Kelly and his spokesman have denied that allegation and labelled the analysis “ill- informed nonsense”.