Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 11 June 2026
86. Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport if he will develop and publish a long-term, cross-sectoral strategy to address gender inequality across the cultural, communications and sporting sectors; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43694/26]
View answerMy Department’s Statement of Strategy sets out in detail the strategies and actions that will be employed to deliver on the Department’s high-level goals, together with the outcomes that will be achieved through them.
In addition to these, a number of cross cutting-goals have been incorporated into the Department’s objectives which will be reflected in my Department's policies and programmes over the lifetime of the Statement of Strategy. This includes supporting and promoting diversity, social inclusion and full and effective female participation across the Department’s sectors and society in line with Programme for Government commitments.
My Department has also been consulted by the Department of Children, Disability and Equality on the new National Strategy for Women & Girls 2025-2030, launched in November 2025 which takes a whole of Government approach to Gender Equality with relevant actions across all Departments.
The Department has committed to support gender equality and also committed to supports for the protection of women and girls. The main commitments in the National Strategy for Women and Girls for my Department are as follows:
• The introduction of measures to remove the imbalance of visibility between men and women in the Arts and Media Sectors, such as women’s visibility in mainstream media and with a genuine variety of roles for women, which is an important marker of gender equality;
• The introduction of measures to prevent the harassment of women and girls in public spaces and online and to identify and address its causes;
• The introduction of measures to improve women and girls participation in Sport, which is important for health and wellbeing outcomes.
Complementary national policy frameworks that will help achieve these objectives under my Department’s remit also include:
• Coimisiún na Meán’s 'Gender, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy for the Audio and Audiovisual Media Sector 2024-2027', and
• Sport Ireland’s ‘Women in Sport Policy’.
