MOTYA Special Recognition Award Winner Helen McEntee TD
Justice Minister, Helen McEntee, TD was the worthy recipient of The Woman’s Way and Beko Mum of the Year Award, Special Recognition Award 2021.
The Woman’s Way and Beko Mum of the Year Awards took place at a special lunch at the Intercontinental Hotel in Dublin. Woman’s Way and Beko teamed up for the sixth consecutive year to host the awards, which showcases and celebrates Irish mothers and highlights their contribution across all facets of society.
Meath native Helen McEntee, became the first cabinet minister in Irish history to take paid maternity leave while in office earlier this year and was on hand to accept the accolade
For Helen becoming a mum was a very public affair, not least because she made history in doing so.
Helen gave birth to a boy, Michael Shane Hickey, in April 2021, making her the first serving cabinet minister to give birth while in office.
Her maternity leave, which became a national talking point, is being facilitated by a complicated arrangement which the Fine Gael Meath East TD previously said is a “sticking plaster” until a more permanent solution is found.
She wants to change that for the future. “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 ambition”, she said on the eve of her maternity leave.
Subsequently the Ceann Comhairle, Seán Ó Fearghaíl TD, established a Dáil Forum on creating a Family-Friendly and Inclusive Parliament, considering issues such as maternity and paternity leave and other changes to the current system. The Forum is due to report shortly.
But as Helen quite rightly pointed out: “Women and men should know that having a family is not an impediment to a career in public life. “There are still many barriers to women entering politics. One of those barriers is the lack of maternity and paternity leave for councillors, TDs, senators and ministers”.
Chair of the Judging Panel Norah Casey who the sits on the newly formed Dáil ‘Family Friendly’ Forum and knows first-hand the impact that Special Recognition Award recipient Helen McEntee has had. “Helen’s pregnancy raised significant constitutional issues, there was even talk that she might have to quit the cabinet. The current legal framework is completely outdated and makes no concessions for pregnancy. Helen has had a stellar political career to date and is a role model for young women in Ireland who see the possibilities of what they might achieve in life. But she is also an ambassador for working mums and through her actions and words has sparked a much overdue conversation about women in public life and politics.”
Helen McEntee TD was appointed Minister for Justice in June 2020. She is the fourth female Minister for Justice in the history of the State. She was elected to Dáil Éireann in a By-Election in March 2013. She was the only nominee whose name went forward to contest the seat, and the only woman among eleven candidates in the by-election. She was re-elected in the February 2016 general election and was appointed by the then Taoiseach Enda Kenny TD to be Minister for Mental Health and Older People in May. In June 2017, as part of a government reshuffle by newly appointed Taoiseach, Leo Varadkar TD, Minister McEntee was promoted to the position of Minister of State for EU Affairs.