Gender balance in Dáil Éireann poses a new dilemma for established parties

From 2023, the gender quota, which was set at 30% for last year's general elections, will rise to 40%, placing further pressure on political parties who risk losing funding if they don't reach the threshold

The move to equal political representation has been "painfully slow", according to Social Democrat TD Róisín Shortall, who was initially against quotas but now sees the merit in them. Picture: Gareth Chaney/Collins

"No country can ever truly flourish if it stifles the potential of its women and deprives itself of the contribution of half its citizens" — Michelle Obama.

By the time Dáil Éireann celebrated 100 years in 2019, just 114 women had been elected as TDs. In the same period, around 1,190 men had taken a seat in our national parliament.