Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Chair and the committee for the invitation and am delighted to take up the opportunity.

Gender equality is a key priority for this Government and if we are to make meaningful advances in gender equality, it will require a broad and inclusive approach. The catalyst for inviting me today is of course the admirable work carried out by the Citizens' Assembly on Gender Equality and the subsequent report and associated recommendations on this issue, guided by the excellent chairing of Dr. Catherine Day, whom I would like to acknowledge and thank.

The report is a comprehensive assessment of the issues at play in considering gender equality across multiple domains including constitutional change; care; social protection; leadership in politics, public life and the workplace; norms, stereotypes and education; pay and workplace conditions; domestic, sexual and gender-based violence; and gender equality in law and policy. As the committee is aware, these are all complex areas and I will not be able to cover all relevant developments in each of them, but I will highlight some of the advances that have been made in specific issues of concern.

One important issue the citizens' assembly report called attention to is the need to facilitate women to participate and assume leadership positions in politics, public life and the workplace. It is incumbent on the Government, and indeed all of us in politics, within our parties or groups, to do our utmost to ensure women do not face unnecessary barriers to their full participation. In negotiating and agreeing the current programme for Government, this was an important issue for all three parties. In the programme for Government, we pledged, among other things, to empower local authorities to encourage improved gender and ethnic mix in local elections; require local authorities to be more flexible with meeting times and to use remote working technologies and flexible work practices to support councillors with parenting or caring responsibilities, including childcare, and reduce travel times and absences from work; and examine further mechanisms informed by international best practice to encourage political parties to select more women for the 2024 local elections. As we approach the half way point in this Government’s mandate we are making good progress in this area.

The Government has published the Work Life Balance and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2022 to transpose the remaining elements of the EU work-life balance directive including a right to request flexible working within the terms of the directive and an entitlement to leave for medical care purposes. This legislation will also fulfil a long-standing Government commitment to extend the entitlement to breastfeeding breaks under the Maternity Protection Acts to two years.

In addition, earlier this year, the Government gave approval to draft a general scheme to grant an entitlement of maternity leave to councillors. The scheme offers the choice to appoint an individual as a temporary substitute in the place of a councillor who takes a period of maternity-related absence or is absent due to illness. We know female councillors have felt pressure to turn up to important votes or debates, when they needed to be at home caring for a new baby. It is not credible maternity leave if you cannot fully switch off from your work.

An extension in July this year has brought the entitlement to parent's leave and benefit to seven weeks for each eligible parent to be taken within the first two years of a child’s life or adoptive placement. The Government has also committed to introducing domestic violence leave. This leave will create a valuable support for victims of domestic violence to take the time they need to access supports and to maintain their employment.

Another initiative we have brought forward, which has good potential in terms of building capacity and encouraging more women into public life, is the All Island Women’s Forum established with the support of the shared island unit I established within the Department of the Taoiseach. I want to acknowledge and thank the National Women’s Council of Ireland for its active support in making that happen and in making it the catalyst I am certain it can be. Indeed, it has also been an important partner in our work on improving female participation in the 2024 local elections and in our free contraception initiative.

Another important area addressed within the citizens’ assembly report was on childcare and workers in the sector; more specifically, making the former more affordable and improving the terms and conditions of the latter. Four years ago, annual State investment in early learning and childcare stood at €485 million.

Just three weeks ago, my colleague, the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Deputy McGrath, announced that budget 2023 would allocate €1.025 billion to early learning and childcare.

The fact that the target of spending €1 billion on this area by 2028 was exceeded five years ahead of schedule is a demonstration, I hope, of the value this Government places on early learning and childcare and a recognition of the benefits it confers to children and their families, society and the economy.

On 15 September 2022, the first ever employment regulation orders for the early years services sector came into effect, setting new minimum hourly rates of pay for various roles in the early years services sector. The orders are supported by our core funding scheme, which commenced on 15 September this year and will see increases in funding to early learning and childcare services to support improvements in staff wages, alongside a commitment to freezing parental fees. It is estimated that almost three quarters of those working in the sector will see their wages rise as a result of the employment regulation orders, with the wages of half of all employees in the sector expected to rise by 10% or more and the wages of 20% of employees expected to rise by 20% or more. It is interesting that those involved in social partnership and the social partners see the development of the employment regulation orders as one of the most significant things to happen in recent times in respect of childcare, in particular, and standards of conditions in childcare.

While no single one of these initiatives will deal with all the issues, cumulatively they amount to tangible and meaningful progress. As the committee knows, another important aspect of the citizens’ assembly was examining the gender equality principle in law and policy. The Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth is currently undertaking a review of the equality Acts. This review aims to examine the functioning of the Acts and their effectiveness in combating discrimination and promoting equality. I know the committee has been actively engaged on the citizens’ assembly recommendations for constitutional change. This is a complex area and the position paper developed by this committee as part of its interim report is very welcome and will help to inform the development of Government proposals in partnership with the Oireachtas. I know the specific proposals are being considered by the Minister, Deputy O’Gorman, at present and all the various complexities notwithstanding the Government is committed to holding a referendum on Article 41.2 of Bunreacht na hÉireann.

This Government is also genuinely committed to advancing measures that assist in developing and promoting gender equality through the kinds of measures and reforms I have mentioned in this brief statement. There is much more to talk about in the wide-ranging citizens’ assembly report and I hope that we can explore some of the issues more fully now in our discussion. Go raibh míle maith agat.