Dr. Iris Elliott:

I thank Senator Rabbitte for her question on data. What was striking for us in our Irish Travellers Access to Justice report was that because the Irish Prison Service had introduced an ethnic identifier, we had that data. We did not have that data in the Courts Service. We did not have that data in An Garda Síochána. We did not have that data in lots of other public services. There is a need for it. We have an equality data strategy which is waiting to go to the Cabinet and be published. We have been waiting for that for over a year. That will provide a whole structure around improving data in Ireland because it was co-led, as a strategy, with the CSO. The CSO has played a leading role in getting good definitions and common categories. It has a great deal of experience around the collection of data. I am also aware, because we have very much benefited from it, that the Traveller community itself has regionally leading expertise on data collection. I would never accept a public body saying it does not know how to do this given that Pavee Point representatives, for example, have gone to Spain to advise the Spanish Government and engage with the Roma community there. Pavee Point recently chaired a workshop on equality data at our inaugural annual conference. Therefore, the expertise is within the State in the CSO and the Traveller and Roma community, and we have a policy that needs to go to the Government and move forward.

The other opportunity is that the new European directives on standards for equality bodies have a number of different articles around data collection which will empower IHREC to make recommendations about what data is collected, to have a right to access data and to produce reports using that data in terms of all the different groups in the State.

We are nearly there. We have something box-fresh that is ready to produce. We have the opportunity to transpose the EU directives on standards for equality bodies very well. That is currently on the legislative programme. Definitely, there is work that can be done there.

There is also a need to invest in research. Obviously, Research Ireland has a role in the research that is funded into the Traveller community. Ideally, you would have a strong administrative data system and a strong national data infrastructure. Those who compiled the Irish Travellers Access to Justice report, which we commissioned from the University of Limerick, spoke to one in 100 Travellers in the country, to representative organisations and to public bodies. That is also a useful way to have data. I very much appreciate the frustration. The over-representation of Traveller children in care is known in the Traveller community and in the human rights and equality community but it is treated as if it is anecdotal evidence. We are in a little bit of an endless circle around that but we are nearly there around moving forward legislatively and at a policy level on data.