Written answers

Thursday, 24 March 2022

Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth

Equality Issues

Photo of Jennifer Murnane O'ConnorJennifer Murnane O'Connor (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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304. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the way he intends to proceed with regard to the next national LGBTI+ inclusion strategy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15303/22]

Photo of Roderic O'GormanRoderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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The Government is committed to achieving its vision of a safe, fair and inclusive Ireland where people are supported to flourish and to live inclusive, healthy and fulfilling lives, whatever their sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or sex characteristics. Ireland’s first National LGBTI+ Inclusion Strategy 2019-2022, published in November 2019, is the primary policy vehicle to achieve this vision.

The Strategy pursues objectives under four thematic pillars providing a vision of an Ireland where LGBTI+ people are visible and included, treated equally, healthy and feel safe and supported. With a view to making progress towards these high-level objectives, it contains over 100 actions.

To offset delays in the strategies implementation due to the public health emergency caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, I extended its lifetime into 2022.  It will be reviewed as part of the process of developing a successor strategy.

The LGBTI+ National Youth Strategy arose from the National Youth Strategy, which was published in 2015. This broader youth strategy identified LGBTI+ young people as a specific group to be considered in the context of focused provision for marginalised and disadvantaged young people. Following this, the LGBTI+ National Youth Strategy was published in June 2018. As with the Inclusion strategy, its lifetime was extended into 2021 to off-set delays in its implementation caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. A review of the strategy is now underway and the subsequent report will be available in due course.

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