Less than 25% of Local Councillors are Women

The pace of change isn’t good enough when it comes to gender equality in local government – That’s the message from the National Women’s Council of Ireland.

Only 23% of successful candidates in the recent local elections were women – an increase of 2% from five years ago.

Locally only five of the seventeen female candidates that ran for election actually won a seat.

Just three women out of twenty-four are in the new line up for Kilkenny county council and two out of eighteen for Carlow.

Director of the National Women’s Council, Orla O’Connor says it’s vital that the gender gap is addressed.