Mary White (Fianna Fail)

I am not. There are so few women in the Oireachtas – 13% in the Dáil and 16% in the Seanad – that perhaps we need the European Union to bring in legislation to insist we have a certain percentage of women representatives in Parliament. This sort of change is not being driven here culturally. That we have so few women in our Parliament is an unnatural undemocratic situation. I am sure the men agree with me on this. Why do we not change it ourselves? We should tell the Government we need a percentage of women.

I am reading about Hannah Sheehy Skeffington at present. I am beginning to think we need radical women in the same way as we did in 1916. There needs to be radical thinking. We should demand more women to get the balance right. I am sure Senator Coghlan agrees with me.