This Wednesday the Dáil will debate whether or not to extend maternity leave and maternity benefit for mums whose babies were born prematurely.
This move comes after the Green Party
put forward a motion calling for the Government to do something about the current maternity leave situation, which sees maternity leave kick off from the moment your child is born.
Each year, 4,500 babies are born prematurely in Ireland, and the Green Party Deputy Leader Catherine Martin want to see current allowances extended by the number of weeks early that a baby is born.
Speaking ahead of Wednesday's motion, Martin explains that having a premature baby can mean weeks of medical anxiety as well as financial difficulty for new mums.
"Currently maternity leave kicks off from the moment your child is born, so it doesn't take into consideration if your child comes early and the stresses and strains and emotional turmoil that goes through that," Martin points out.
"After going through that, hell and back really, you only have eight weeks left and that seems completely unfair."
