Sharon Keogan (Independent)

I second Senator Sarah O'Reilly's remarks yesterday in welcoming the recent UK Supreme Court verdict confirming the biological definition of womanhood and I echo her call for a debate on the matter. After a decade of hysteria it is a relief to many of us to finally see common sense prevail. It is nothing short of a disgrace that it has taken so long and has required measures as extreme as a Supreme Court case for the law to finally acknowledge what a woman is. It is certainly a disgrace that nothing similar has happened here in Ireland. Considering that last year the Irish people reaffirmed their belief in and support for our constitutional recognition of women I say there is no better time to bring such a legal challenge to the courtroom floor. I encourage any advocacy groups interested in this to get in contact as they will have my wholehearted support.

A court ruling, even in another country, does not mean that this ideology has vanished. A recent report showed that a bath bomb company, whose core audience is girls aged 12 to 18, was including trans ideology pamphlets in its party bags. The pamphlets contained no information about the irreversible effects of puberty blockers or gender reassignment surgery. We do not give under-18s the right to vote or even to drink alcohol yet encourage them to make decisions with irreversible consequences that damage their bodies. To all who have cheered this recent judgment and last year's referendum results I say we are winning the battle but the war is far from over. Let us keep fighting for sanity and for the protection and celebration of womanhood.