Joanna Tuffy (Dublin Mid West, Labour)

I must first declare a personal interest in this issue. I am a qualified solicitor and have practised as a solicitor. In fact, I went into the profession quite late in that it was not my first choice. I completed a degree in English and history and came out of college at a time of high unemployment. I did various things, including a social employment scheme. Eventually I got a job as a clerical officer in the vocational education committee and I worked in the Dublin Institute of Technology, DIT, in Bolton Street.

During that time I attended the legal studies course in the DIT in Rathmines. Later, I took the entrance examinations to the Law Society. In that regard the professions are accessible. Compare that with medicine or other professions. One cannot take other routes into those professions, with the exception of the second chance to enter medicine for people who do the course in Limerick. Generally, however, one could become a solicitor without having a degree. People who have no third level education can do an entrance examination. Both professions are very accessible to people who come from different backgrounds and go into them through different routes.

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