Special Oireachtas Committee on Gender Equality

On Thursday, 3 March 2022, the newly established Special Oireachtas Committee on Gender Equality, chaired by Deputy Ivana Bacik, met in public session for the first time, to debate the recommendations of the Citizens’ Assembly on Gender Equality. Dr Catherine Day, chairperson of the Citizens’ Assembly on Gender Equality was in attendance to engage with the members of the Committee. Dr Day was accompanied by Dr Mary Clare O’Sullivan and Ms Lorraine Kavanagh from the Citizens’ Assembly secretariat.

Dr Day began by welcoming the launch of the Special Committee on Gender Equality and its work to advance progress towards greater equality in Irish society.

In her address to the Committee, Dr Day brought attention to the fact that most of the work of the Citizen’s Assembly on Gender Equality was done during the COVID-19 crisis which brought the issue of care to the fore. The availability, quality, suitability and cost of care was an enduring topic of debate throughout the Assembly’s work. There was also a strong focus on the way our society treats the people who care for us, and on how we need to do better by them.

Via a video played at the meeting, Committee members heard from the members of the Assembly who were keen to send clear and action-oriented recommendations to the committee, communicated with a sense of urgency to achieve positive change. Committee members also heard that the Assembly voted to support and pay higher taxes to make a reality of their recommendations.

In all, there are 45 recommendations that are before the Committee. Dr Day briefly outlined the recommendations in themed blocks during her address. All of the inputs the assembly received and considered as part of its work and the full list of recommendations are available on its website.

Constitutional Change

The citizens proposed to include the principles of gender equality and non-discrimination in the Constitution. More than 80% of the world’s Constitutions have such principles and it is recommended that Ireland joins them. The second suggestion for constitutional change is to extend the obligation of the State to protect family life to all families. Now, only the married family is given that protection in the Irish Constitution. The third area in which they recommend change is something that was already recommended by the Convention on the Constitution in 2013, that is, to delete Article 41.2 of the Constitution, often referred to as the “woman in the home” clause and replace it with an obligation for the State to take reasonable measures to support care within the home and wider community. This recommendation reflects the strong focus on care and caring throughout the work of the assembly.

Increase State Funding into Childcare to 1% of GDP by 2030

In considering how care is given, the citizens recommend improving low rates of pay and dealing with the lack of a proper pay and benefits structure for carers, the vast majority of whom are women. They recommend providing carers with a pay and benefits structure that rewards their skills and training, similar to those of teachers and nurses. They also call for structural change in how childcare is delivered and for an increase in the State’s share of GDP spent on childcare to 1% by 2030. That would bring Ireland into line with the UNICEF target.

In dealing with domestic, sexual and gender-based violence, the Assembly calls for support for victims and survivors. In this regard, they urge reform of the courts system, specialist training for judges and lawyers, and ensuring sufficient publicly funded beds, shelters and accommodation for victims and survivors. They also recommend that a Cabinet Minister should coordinate a national strategy to prevent and counter domestic, sexual and gender-based violence, and the creation of victims and survivors commissioner to be an independent advocate and voice for victims and survivors.

In some areas of their work, citizens were surprised to learn that timely data were not available. The citizens recommend having a statutory body for gender equality led by a Cabinet Minister to ensure cross-government coordination on gender equality issues. Other recommendations include requiring gender impact assessment of policies and equality budgeting across all Government bodies and local authorities.

Early Childhood Ireland will be monitoring the progress of these issues for our sector. Our Policy Team is available to answer questions on the topics raised here.