But, there’s a pretty big but. The Constitution, the law and the political system are against her. Ms McEntee’s case is unprecedented. There is no provision for a TD to take maternity leave, let alone a Cabinet minister. The optics, politics and logistics of the Justice Minister’s maternity leave are complex, will be scrutinised and do matter to women. Technically, a TD doesn’t actually take any sort of leave, including holidays. TDs are paid once they are elected and their level of activity over the term of the Dáil is determined by themselves. Not that it matters, but Ms McEntee has one of the safest seats in the land. Her Fine Gael seat in Meath East is in prime Blueshirt territory, previously held by former Taoiseach John Bruton and her late father, Shane McEntee. She has also seen off her party rival Regina Doherty in the past year. Her constituency operation is formidable and will continue while she is on leave. The Houses of the Oireachtas will give her additional secretarial support during her leave.