Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, Solidarity) | Oireachtas source

There are reports in the media today about a draft report on sex education issued by the Joint Committee on Education and Skills. The news reports sound positive as it seems the report will recommend dragging sex education in this country out of the dark ages, making it fully inclusive of LGBTQ+ relationships and experiences, and covering issues of sexual health, etc. They also indicate that the report recommends making a change in the legislation to stop religious ethos acting as a barrier to prevent even a very progressive, factual, objective curriculum from being delivered. The House has already passed Second Stage of similar legislation. I refer to the Provision of Objective Sex Education Bill 2018, which the Taoiseach bizarrely described as sinister the last time I asked him about it.

The question is, now that the committee will recommend such legislation, will the Government give a money message to allow that legislation to progress to Committee Stage and enable us to have progressive sex education?

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