IRELAND looks set to follow Scotland and Finland with baby boxes to be given to all new parents.
The newly formed coalition government in Dublin has unveiled the move in its first legislative programme which is to be voted on in the Dail later this week.
Neale Richmond, the Fine Gael TD, welcomed the development on Twitter yesterday.
He said: “If this #programmeforgovernment is passed, I’m delighted that Ireland will follow Scotland & Finland in rolling out the #babybox scheme.”
Richmond helped spearhead the campaign for the initiative in Ireland after meeting with Scotland’s Children’s Minister, Maree Todd, in Edinburgh and after attending the SNP’s conference in October 2018.
He added: “This programme will ensure that regardless of their means all parents can rest assured that their babies have all their need.”
Todd welcomed the development in Ireland. “This is wonderful to see,” she wrote on Twitter in response to Richmond’s post.
The baby box was introduced in Scotland by Nicola Sturgeon’s Government in August 2017 as a means to convey the equality of everyone and also as a way of tackling deprivation, improving health and supporting parents.
Since the 1930s Finnish parents have been given a cardboard box containing essentials for babies, such as sleep-suits and nappies, as well as advice leaflets for parents.
Inspired by the Finnish scheme, the Scottish baby box contains essential items such as nappies, wipes, a bath towel, bibs, baby clothes, a soft toy and books. Lined with a mattress and fitted sheet, it can also be used as somewhere for the baby to sleep in his or her early weeks.
The box also contains a specially commissioned poem by Jackie Kay called Welcome Wee One, who is Scotland’s national poet laureate – also known as The Scots Makar (Makar being a 15th-century Scottish term for a poet or bard). The poem is an ode to the joys of bringing a new baby into the world.
The Irish Government’s Programme for Government is being voted upon by the three coalition parties with results due on Friday.
If passed, the Dail will sit on Saturday to elect a new Taoiseach and Government. That vote signifies the start of the programme.
Three baby box pilot schemes have been implemented already in Ireland and these will be increased steadily with the aim to have 60,000 boxes distributed to parents every year.
To date more than 115,000 boxes have been delivered to parents in Scotland – with uptake now at 96%.
Last week three Irish parties agreed to govern in coalition with a rotating Taoiseach after agreeing a draft deal. Four months after the country’s election, the largest party in parliament, Fianna Fail, said it had “signed off on the draft programme for government” with Fine Gael and the Green Party.
Taoiseach Leo Varadkar of Fine Gael – acting in a caretaker role since his party was routed at the polls – said there would be a rotating Taoiseach at dates that had been agreed upon.
Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin, who leads a 38-seat bloc in a 160-seat Dail, will become the first premier until December 2022, when Varadkar will take over again.
“We’re going to have to learn to work with each other, we’re going to have to learn to trust each other, but I know that’s possible,” Varadkar said.
Sinn Fein, which won the second largest number of votes at the election, condemned the agreement. Leader Mary Lou McDonald said the two main parties were only interested in “protecting the status quo”. “A government led by Fine Gael and Fianna Fail together does not represent the change that people voted for in February,” she said.
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