Billy Timmins (Wicklow, Fine Gael)

Will the Minister inform the House of the proposals in the reports of the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform and other bodies?

In a previous reply the Minister stated he would examine the height requirement for women, which is an old chestnut. The former Minister for Defence, Deputy Michael Smith, reduced the requirement from 5 ft. 5 in. to 5 ft. 4 in. but he also reduced the requirement for males to the same height. The Defence Forces have put forward the case that a certain height requirement is needed for carrying loads but there is no scientific evidence on which to base this requirement. I am sure some of our top international male and female weight-lifters are shorter than 5 ft. 4 in. The Minister should examine the research on the body mass index carried out in his constituency in the former Thomond College.

Does the Minister agree the average height of women is less than that of men? If the entry requirement is 5 ft. 4 in. for both genders, it discriminates against women as a far greater percentage of women than men cannot apply for the Defence Forces. Does the Minister understand my point? He has a mathematical brain and it should not be a difficult issue to grasp.

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