Ireland, despite two of its former Presidents having been women, has a pretty poor record in terms of female participation in public/political life. At the time of publishing, the Republic of Ireland ranks 25th out of 27 European countries in terms of female political representation.

In this public lecture, held by the Policy institute Trinity College Dublin, the question of Women in Irish political life was addressed by speakers speakers Prof Gail McElroy, Ms Rachel Nolan, Prof Ivana Bacik.

Prof McElroy delivered a talk titled 'Where are all the women? The political ambition gap in Irish public life' where she presented preliminary findings from her current research regarding women in Irish politics. Ms Rachel Nolan reflected on her experiences of serving as an MP for 11 years including three as a Senior Minister in a robust Parliamentary environment. Senator Ivana Bacik coomented on both presentations bringing into discussion her own insights from elected office. The event was chaired by Dr. Catherine Lawless, Director of Centre for Gender and Women's Studies.