Labour accuses Govt over gender equality

Labour has accused the Government of squandering the opportunity "to redress the inequalities facing women".

Labour has accused the Government of squandering the opportunity "to redress the inequalities facing women".

Councillor Ms Joanna Tuffy said: "After five of unprecedented economic growth women still earn 25 per cent less then men on average."

Ms Tuffy said women were "massively underrepresented at senior management level in Ireland with only 3 per cent of managing directors being."

"In 2002 women are still less likely to be home owners than men and more likely to live in poor quality rented accommodation. They are also at greater risk of being in poverty than at any time since 1994," she said.

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Mr Tuffy also said the Government has failed to deliver a cancer strategy to tackle the problem of breast cancer in Ireland which she said kills over 650 women a year.

"The Government's record in supporting the victims of sexual abuse is also lamentable. There is a backlog of two years in dealing with rape cases at the circuit court, at a time when 42 per cent of Irish women report suffering sexual abuse or assault," she said.

Free GP healthcare would be a requirement of any Labour participation in government, she said.