Vol. 421 No. 5
4 Mrs. Fennell asked the Taoiseach when the report of the Second Commission on the Status of Women will be available; and whether he will be seeking the commission's opinion on promised legal and constitutional changes related to Constitutional Article 40.3.3.
I am informed by the secretariat to the commission that it is intended to submit the commission's report to Government in October.
Given the broad terms of reference and the independence which have been assigned to the commission it is, of course, open to them to offer an opinion on issues which involve legal or constitutional change. I do not, therefore, propose to ask the commission specifically for an opinion on matters relating to Article 40.3.3º of the Constitution.
I thank the Minister of State for his reply. I look forward to the launching of the report and I commend the chairperson, Miss Justice Mella Carroll, and the members of the commission for the great work they did. However, I wish to stress to the Minister of State and the Taoiseach that many women in the recent referendum by voting "Yes" showed faith in the Government. They voted against their better judgement for the greater good of the country but they are unsure and cannot really trust the Government to deliver on the important measures.
I ask the Minister of State to consult with the chairperson of the commission because I believe women would have greater confidence if they felt that the chairperson and the commission, given their expertise and considerable skills, would have an input into the decision in relation to the next referendum. I ask the Minister of State to bear this suggestion in mind given that their report will not now be presented until October.
I reject totally the Deputy's statement that the women of Ireland do not trust the Government. As the Deputy will be aware, I have consulted widely with women's organisations during the past few months, including the Council for the Status of Women who have made a positive contribution and recommended that women should vote "Yes". It is clear, given the high "Yes" vote in the referendum, that the women of Ireland supported the strategy pursued by the Government. I agree with Deputy Fennell when she says that the work of the commission is most important and that we are eagerly awaiting the outcome of their deliberations. They have received 600 submissions and that is the reason their report will not now be made available until October. We were expecting the report to be presented around this time.
I am not going to nitpick on this matter but I would like to think that the commission will present their recommendations in advance of the referendum.
