Shane Ross: We will keep asking until we get an answer on Saudi vote

Transport Minister Shane Ross has said the public is “entitled” to know how Ireland voted on Saudi Arabia’s election to the UN Commission on the Status of Women.

There has been widespread international criticism of the vote to give the Arab state a seat on the commission, given its poor record in gender equality.

The Department of Foreign Affairs refuses to state how Ireland voted and it is understood it was not discussed at cabinet prior to the vote.