The Government is once again offering to do something about discrimination against women. And it is all about the coming general election. The last time there was such a flurry of activity was in 2001, when a draft National Plan for Women was prepared.
Unfortunately, the plan never got beyond the draft stage. But that draft document was used to reassure the United Nations in 2002 that this State was meeting its international obligations to eliminate discrimination against women. Since then, pay discrimination has actually worsened.
Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, Tánaiste Michael McDowell and Minister for Education Mary Hanafin gathered in Dublin yesterday to launch a National Women's Strategy. That course of action was recommended by an official committee in 2002. But it is only now being implemented. The lack of urgency reflects the importance attached to equal pay and to women's rights at Government level.
Some things have changed in recent years. The number of women in the workforce has doubled to about 800,000. And overall living standards have risen sharply. But the latest European Commission figures show a widening of the pay gap between men and women in Ireland from 15 per cent to 16 per cent since 2003. And while there is no significant difference in pay levels within the public service, discrimination persists in terms of the percentage of women promoted to the highest levels.
Under the current six-year national development plan, some €150 million was set aside by the Department of Justice to provide for gender equality measures and to fund projects dealing with domestic violence. Nearly €60 million of that funding will be used to enhance the socio-economic status of women. These are welcome measures. But they fall far short of the kind of radical intervention being sought by the National Women's Council of Ireland. Irish women are seriously under-represented in political life. Female graduates receive 11 per cent less pay than male colleagues in their first job. There is pension discrimination against those women who - pre 1973 - were forced to retire from the Civil Service because of the marriage ban. Parents pay 90 per cent of childcare costs here, compared to 33 per cent in Denmark. And Ireland is one of the few EU countries with no provision for paid parental leave.
Before the last general election, the Progressive Democrats promised to complete and implement the draft National Plan for Women. Fianna Fáil gave a similar commitment while undertaking to publish regular reviews of progress made and to ensure enforcement. Those promises were not kept.