John O'Donoghue (Kerry South, Fianna Fail)

This is always a difficult subject. The Equal Status Act, 2000 and the Employment Equality Act, 1998, which I moved in this House as the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, govern equality in terms of employment and the provision of services. The grounds mentioned in those Acts are far wider than that of gender and include areas such as ethnic origin, religion, sexual preference and others. The gender issue is not the only one to consider when dealing with the attainment of equality.

There is a Government guideline to the effect that State boards should, as far as possible, be constituted of 40% females and the remainder males, though it is possible to increase the number of females. In some State bodies, there is a relatively even spread between genders, though this is not the case for all boards.

It is difficult to ensure that the question of gender is taken care of while also ensuring there is a reasonable spread with regard to the equality agenda generally. It is my preference to ensure that the Government guideline is adhered to. I admit that Senator Quinn's amendment is relatively mild. It may be replicated in the Industrial Development (Enterprise Ireland) Act, 1998 and there is other legislation on the Statute Book, for example, the Irish Sports Council Act, 1999, which deals with this in a different way. That Act provides that at least three members shall be men and at least three women. The new National Tourism Development Authority will, as far as possible, adhere to Government guidelines to ensure that 40% will be women.