Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour) | Oireachtas source

Tá a fhios agam go bhfuil imní ar an Seanadóir faoin cheist seo. Níl sé sásta leis an tascfhórsa atá curtha ar bun ag Ollscoil na hÉireann, Gaillimh.I am satisfied NUI Galway is being proactive in responding to the recent decision of the Equality Tribunal on gender discrimination, and is at the forefront of the universities sector in this respect. As the Senator stated, NUI Galway has established a task force, chaired by Professor Jane Grimson, former Vice-Provost of Trinity College Dublin. The task force will set out its full and detailed terms of reference after its first meeting in the coming weeks.

The task force consists of a number of highly respected members from inside and external to the university, whom I consider well placed to advise the university on its policies, procedures and a range of initiatives to achieve gender equality in promotion. NUI Galway has committed to the development of a range of gender equality initiatives through the international Athena SWAN programme, which I launched recently at the Department. This has been a real force for change in other countries, and I hope to see it have similar positive effects for women working in higher education in Ireland.

The Higher Education Authority, HEA, is actively considering how best to support the improvement of gender equality throughout the Irish higher education system and is developing a database of staff employed in the sector, so we can ensure gender equality becomes a reality at all levels in the academic profession in Ireland. The data shows that in Ireland women represent 43% of academic staff in the universities and institutes of technology. However, only 21% of professors and associate professors in Irish universities are female, and the national average is approximately 19%. This problem is not unique to Ireland. The European Commission's 2012 report, Gender in Research and Innovation, showed that throughout the EU member states women represented only 20% of professorial staff. This problem is not unique to higher education; more broadly, gender inequality is reflected in purely economic terms in the differences in earnings between men and women throughout the world. In this context, I am pleased to report that in the World Economic Forum's Gender Gap Report 2014, Ireland was ranked 8th, above the US which was ranked 20th, and the UK which was ranked 26th. I am not hugely proud of this but we are in a better place than some other countries.

In terms of higher education specifically, gender equality is well established in Irish legislation. The HEA has a specific legislative role in "promoting the attainment of equality of opportunity in higher education". The Universities Act 1997 and the Institutes of Technology Act 2006 require our higher education institutions to promote gender balance and equality of opportunity among students and staff, and to prepare and implement statements of policy in respect of equality, including gender equality, across all of their activities. The HEA has a role in reviewing these policies.

Ireland's National Strategy for Higher Education to 2030 emphasises the equal importance of the three core roles of higher education institutions, namely, teaching and learning, research, and engagement with wider society. There have been a range of initiatives to address the under-representation of women in science, which has been a matter of growing concern among policy-makers internationally in recent years. These initiatives provide a catalyst for affirmative action in respect of gender equality at institutional level. I hope the Athena SWAN programme in particular will make a real change in higher education in Ireland.