There are calls for the incoming Cabinet to be gender-balanced.

Just 36 of the 160 Dáil seats in February’s General Election went to women – despite legislation obliging political parties to ensure 30% of their candidates are female.

On Newstalk Breakfast this morning, Labour Senator Ivana Bacik said the laws led to an increase in women in politics in 2016; however, the gains she hoped to see this time around never materialised.

   
She urged the incoming Taoiseach to tackle the issue by making the next Cabinet as gender balanced as possible.

“I think it is long overdue in Ireland that we would see a greater commitment to women’s representation in politics,” she said.

“We have been appalling in our record in women in parliament over the last few decades despite promising signs in the early 90s.”

She noted that only six of Fine Gael’s 35 TDs and five Fianna Fáil’s 38 TD’s are women.

“That is very poor,” she said. “But at the same time, the women that do come through tend to be of high merit precisely because it is so difficult to come through in the political system.”

Noting that Cabinet appointments are not subject to legislation, she urged the incoming Taoiseach to make a stance on the issue.

“There will be 15 Cabinet Ministers,” she said. “The outgoing Government had four women out of 15. If we saw an increase to six women out of 15, I think that wouldn’t be too big an ask.

“That would almost be a gender balance. It wouldn’t be 50% but I certainly think it would be a very worthy commitment.

“We are talking about three parties and I think between the three parties, it would be perfectly possible to find six or indeed seven women, who would very much merit their positions in Cabinet.”

You can listen back to the full interview here: