Sunday 29 March 2009

Hanne Dahl (Danish MEP) brings baby to the European Parliament

I saw the picture in a Romanian newspaper:
A baby in the European Parliament
Hanne Dahl, a Danish MEP from the eurosceptic party JuniBevægelsen (Independence/Democracy Group) has brought her 3 month old baby to the EP session last week.

According to press reports, Dahl did not intend to make a political statement but needed to take her child because her husband could not be in Brussels that day.

Yet, she - and her party - are now using the international attention that the picture has brought to them to make a case for MEPs who want to go on parental leave. So far, this is not possible - MEPs have the choice to leave the European Parliament or simply remain on duty and letting their children with a partner.

Can it be that a eurosceptic deputy brings some positive attention to the European Parliament...?!

1 comments:

Linda Margaret said...

It's ridiculous, yes, but all to close to home (I'm American). It's not just parental leave. Making workplaces more parent-friendly (like including daycare services in the building) would offer an alternative that might please parents and employers. At the moment, employers can be scared of potential moms, leading to unintentional gender discrimination, as much as parents can be irritated by employers. (http://euforus.blogspot.com/2008/11/mother-of-all-crises.html)