Sir, - Your front-page photograph of June 7th - "Mr Ahern surrounded by his new team" - says it all: there isn't a woman in sight. Hardly surprising, with FF having only seven women TDs out of 81 - a pathetic 8.6 per cent female representation.
The under-representation of women in the 29th Dáil is the story of the election - one overlooked by most reporters. There are 22 women TDs in the new Dáil out of 166 - a measly 13 per cent.
Sinn Féin and the Green Party are the worst culprits with no female representation followed closely by Fine Gael with 6 per cent. Next comes the main party of government, Fianna Fáil.
The only two parties to have any kind of decent representation are Labour (33 per cent) and the Progressive Democrats (50 per cent).
The under-representation of women in our national parliament is very worrying and should be tackled head-on. Radical policies are needed to change this imbalance.
Reform of the Seanad would be a place to start. As a springboard into the Dáil the Seanad has a lot of potential to change the status quo. A policy of affirmative action towards women would encourage more women to get involved in political decision-making bodies.
Enough lip-service has been paid to "equality" for women; it's time for real action. - Yours, etc.,
RUTH O'DEA,
North Great George's Street,
Dublin 1.