Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I also welcome the legislation and thank the Deputies for using Private Members' time for Second Stage. I am pleased that the Minister indicated when he was appointed to office that the reform of section 37 was a priority for him. I acknowledge that he has a legitimate intention in that regard and we all appreciate the fact that this Bill is not being opposed by the Government. However, that does not necessarily mean that the Bill will move forward in the way it should. We must see follow through on it.

The Bill naturally follows from the positive result of the referendum on 22 May. We all felt very good about that result. Deputies from all sides of the House will look back on that day with a good deal of fondness. It was a very positive day and a day on which, for a change, many of us felt we were not fighting with each other. Most of us were on the same side. Many of us became involved in politics with the goal of achieving equality for all citizens - equal rights, equality of opportunities and equality of outcome, equal access to services of the State, equal access to health care and education and equal pay for equal work. All of us could write a long list regarding equality. That is the reason section 37 of the Employment Equality Act sticks out like a sore thumb, containing wide ranging and blank cheque language to provide for State sanctioned discrimination. There is no legitimate reason for it and that is acknowledged by many people.

During the referendum campaign I knew some teachers who were gay or lesbian but who did not speak publicly. They were concerned for their jobs because of the environment in which they worked. People tend to think this happens in Catholic schools, but that was not entirely the case. It was more than that, and we can perhaps understand that this could be the case. They did not feel they could compromise their job security. Some of them love being teachers and are very good teachers, which should be the main reason that we employ people to teach children in our classrooms. Consider the daily reality of being a teacher in a school where one cannot participate in the discussions in the staff canteen and fears how much of one's personal life to reveal. It is a very personal thing for teachers. While many gay and lesbian teachers teach openly in schools, which is very positive, a long shadow is cast by virtue of the legislation being in place. That is the reason it should be removed.

As I said, there was a positive feeling after the referendum not just among the people directly affected by the result but also in the wider community in terms of what it meant. While I am not at all religious, I acknowledge the remarks of people such as Archbishop Diarmuid Martin - I believe we must try to work with such people - who recognised many of the very positive attributes of that day. People felt their community and country accepted them for what they are and that they could live honest lives. I thought that would resonate with part of the ethos on which he would have been commenting.

I believe this country has an attitude of live and let live, and that we wish to give maximum freedom for people to live their lives and not have laws where they are inappropriate. Some of the countries in which same-sex marriage has been legalised, such as Brazil, France, Spain, Portugal, Mexico, Belgium, Luxembourg, Uruguay and Argentina, are countries with a Catholic majority. In addition, polls in the United States show majority support for same-sex marriage among Catholics. Obviously, a powerful message was sent from this Republic when the citizens made the decision. That has not been lost on anybody and it is obviously the reason it was commented on so widely.

However, there are wider issues to be raised, including school patronage and expanding that patronage. School patronage did not start after the foundation of the State. It dates back to the aftermath of Catholic Emancipation, in particular, when schools started to develop usually under a patron. It is a hangover from an out of date time in our history.

This is why we need more movement and to give more choice, not only to teachers but also to parents making choices for their children. A wider choice results in options very quickly. The Educate Together schools are a case in point even though religion is taught in them. The need for wider choice is appreciated. It is even appreciated within the religious-run schools themselves.

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