I will not be attending the debate on International Women's Day later, so I am going to use my time this morning to refer to it. Fifty-one per cent of the population in Ireland are women, so all things being equal, we should have equal representation in the Oireachtas. The population of Cork is 50% women, yet only one woman TD, my party leader, Deputy Holly Cairns, was elected in all of Cork’s constituencies. There are only four women TDs for all of Munster. Fourteen constituencies in Ireland have no women representing them. Ireland ranks 22nd out of the 27 European countries in terms of women elected to national parliaments. We rank 100th in the world.

Research from King's College shows that women leaders prioritise healthcare, welfare and education, benefiting the most vulnerable and making for more equal and caring societies. The research states women work harder to represent constituencies, enhancing trust in government. States with more female leaders are less prone to war and human rights abuses. Women bring collaborative, inclusive leadership to divisive political spaces. Women’s presence in politics increases perceptions of electoral integrity and women’s presence as candidates and officeholders changes a sense of who has the ability to rule.

I am aware that there are measures in place to attempt to improve Ireland’s total deficiency in relation to gender equality in politics, such as gender quotas and Government funding for organisations such as See Her Elected and Women for Election Ireland. I have been looking through some of the debates in the Chamber that we have had over the past year and, honestly, I am quite shocked. Topics have included the following: maternal healthcare; bereavement leave for pregnancy loss; the gendered impact of new rental legislation; mother and baby homes; sexual abuse images, whether AI-generated or simply shared without consent; the high level of domestic, sexual and gender-based violence; the extremely low number of convictions for sexual assault; carers being women disproportionately; the childcare crisis; and the failing healthcare system for women suffering from conditions such as endometriosis, premenstrual dysphoric disorder and menopause. The list of crises in this country that affect women is endless. While we have many strategies, including the zero tolerance strategy to end domestic, sexual and gender-based violence, the women's health action plan and the national strategy for women and girls, this is simply not enough.

Without more women in politics, women's issues will continue to be treated as fringe issues. We make up half the population but so many basic services and rights for women are either missing or ineffective. Therefore, for this International Women's Day we need a complete overhaul of how we tackle gender inequality in Ireland and overcome the systemic barriers to women’s equal participation in policy-making and decision-making so we will not be here next year or the following years repeating the same conversations. Ní saoirse go saoirse na mban. That is my cúpla focal for the week.