Ms Catherine Heaney:

There are probably a couple of people who have more to say on this than I do. Gender equality and the place of women in the workplace has always been a very important part of the work of the forum. Some businesses can be a little ahead of Government and that is why we are highlighting those important practices like the recent decision by Diageo, which we highlighted at our CSR leaders breakfast this year. That puts a bit of peer pressure and moral pressure on other business in the absence of legislation. However, as Dr. McHugh said, common practice, or even limited practice, is not a replacement for legislation but, obviously, that is not our role. We often talk about the carrot and stick, and sometimes it is the stick and the carrot. Unfortunately, we do not have the stick, we just have the carrot, and that is really all we can go with at the moment.

There are many companies that are particularly strong examples. International and domestic companies are bringing very important practice into the workforce because they realise they need to. While it should not always happen this way, when there is a labour shortage, there is an imperative and things are speeded up with great haste. The Deputy never knows: her legislation may have another turn soon enough. Businesses are finding it difficult to retain and hire staff.