Ms Louise Bayliss:

Senator O'Keeffe asked whether equality budgeting had failed somewhere. Lessons have been learned. Last year, someone who had been involved in equality assessments in the Northern Ireland Assembly visited us. She told us that disaggregated data and information were used, that NGOs and stakeholders were included more and that it was making a positive difference. However, she pointed out that this process was not underpinned by legislation. Some gaps were highlighted. Senator O'Keeffe said she would be afraid of its becoming window dressing, which is something of which we would also be terrified. There is no point in adding another layer that does not achieve anything, so I understand the Senator's concerns.

When the woman from the Assembly attended our equality budgeting seminar in the office of the National Women's Council of Ireland, she stated that, to keep the burden from being placed on the shoulders of the individual who had been disproportionately affected or discriminated against, legislation was necessary. In this way, as soon as information showed there was a gap, there could be a legislative outcome and people could act. This is something we have learned from our neighbours.