Jennifer Murnane O'Connor (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

We all received CSO figures this week. Campaigners are calling for flexible careers for Irish women to prevent a decline into poverty after the CSO statistics revealed that 98% of carers and those carrying out household duties are female. More than six out of ten, or 61% of nearly 200,000 carers are female while 30% of those women carers provide 29 hours or more of unpaid work weekly, which limits their potential to earn and progress into careers. That is absolutely true. This is 2017 and there should be equal opportunities for men and women. We should also have equal wages for men and women, an issue that has been addressed lately and on which people have been campaigning. It is not good enough. We need to highlight this and us women need to stick together. I can guarantee that we work every bit as hard as men if not even harder. These figures need to be addressed.

I give my support to the 13,000 people who have been taken off their tracker mortgages. I will be calling on the Taoiseach to come in to the Seanad to address this. We need accountability. One's home is one's castle and that is the reality. It is unacceptable that there are 13,000 people in this position.