11. Stresses that the creation of new employment opportunities must be accompanied by implementing measures to reconcile work and family life, encourage men and women to share domestic responsibilities and assist young mothers in returning to the labour market by providing sufficient, accessible, affordable and good quality childcare facilities (such as day nurseries, crèches and public recreational activities for children) and services for dependent adults in the public and private sector; stresses that such measures avert the risk that mothers have to give up or break their careers, or refrain from or delay starting a family, thereby avoiding their professional and social exclusion and reducing the risk that their chil ...[+++]dren will face poverty and social exclusion; calls, in this context, on the Council to find a common position with Parliament on the Maternity Leave Directive;

At the same time, as we are sure you can readily appreciate, many new mothers find caring for their new child and continuing to provide care for four or five small children a bit overwhelming.

26. Points out the vital need for the accurate evaluation of statistical data on gender issues, as well as on other aspects of multiple discrimination such as ethnicity, particularly as there is not always statistically differentiated data on gender relating to children and young people; recalls that this is one of the tasks of the new Institute for Gender Equality;

This, too, will lead to greater challenges for legislators to put in place the necessary protective measures to guarantee that young children are protected from viewing wholly violent and inappropriate television programmes.

Young people think that there is a need for a reconsideration of traditional gender roles, particularly in areas of high unemployment and low public (child care) services.

Whether the tender years doctrine is styled a rule of common sense or not, the factual reality is that the bulk of child care, particularly of pre-school age children, is performed by mothers.The tender years doctrine reflects that a young child is more likely to be cared for by the child's mother and, if that is the case, it is in the best interests of the child to remain with the mother unless there are other compelling reasons to uproot the child in the child's best interests.