Mar 07 - GSD Accuses Minister Sacramento of 'Making Gender Issues in Gibraltar Partisan'
The GSD Opposition has taken issue with Minister Sacramento’s comments to the media, on her attendance of a UN women’s conference, that: “There is a lot of work to be done in this field (women’s issues) given that this area was never one of concern for the previous administration”.
The Party notes that ‘sadly, the Minister for Equality finds it necessary to make gender issues in Gibraltar partisan, for the sake of scoring cheap political points. It is therefore appropriate at this juncture with the upcoming celebration of ‘International Women’s Day’ on Friday, and for the avoidance of doubt, to take a quick look back on all that the previous administration did achieve for women in Gibraltar:
Gibraltar saw the introduction of maternity leave, paternity leave, maternity allowance and maternity grants for unmarried mothers. School lunches in schools and the introduction of free Government nursery places. Children’s parks were built and school holidays’ Sports Programme offered. Family-friendly hours & job-sharing and qualitative change in composition of middle & senior management enabled in the public sector. Tax forms were made gender-neutral and the elimination of anti-women discrimination from Gibraltarian status. Spouses & orphans pension scheme introduced, equalisation of widow & widower pension rights, non-working wives to receive or share in husbands’ pensions, married working women given the chance to pay difference in Social Insurance contributions. A sheltered home for abused women was set up, new family & children’s and Equal Opportunities legislation was passed. A Breast Screening Programme and HPV vaccination programme was introduced.
Despite all these positive moves for our society, a lot more still needs to be done, which was highlighted by the Opposition Spokesman for Equality, Isobel Ellul-Hammond, during her Budget Speech last year and on last year’s ‘International Women’s Day’, but it is sad that Ms Sacramento has chosen to ignore this and make it a partisan issue.
The number of women in employment has tripled over the last 20 years yet there are still three times more women in part-time, opportunity-free, low paid employment and three times more men in managerial positions who make it to the very top, even within the Education & Care services sectors where women dominate the workforce. There is a need to conduct a survey across all employment sectors to ensure that equality exists and to address any issues that may be highlighted’
