Sir, – In the wake of Donald Trump’s running mate JD Vance’s recent comments regarding “childless cat ladies” being the ruination of society, Pilita Clark points out that the number of people choosing not to have children is on the rise in the United States (“Beware the march of the childless voter”, Opinion, August 5th).
Brianna Parkins has written that she has “yet to meet a woman who has regretted not getting married. I’ve met plenty who have regretted getting married” (Opinion, August 2nd).
It is good to see this discourse against misogynistic positions. However, in Ireland we have a long way to go to irradiate similar though possibly more veiled attitudes.
The Constitution prioritises families despite being in contradiction with the Equal Status Act, which says you can’t discriminate on the basis of family status. However, the Constitution trumps legislation.
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This has an impact on everyday life, for example a single person must sign a waiver upon drawing down a mortgage to say their home is not a family home and therefor can be repossessed quicker than that of a family home.
When we hear politicians talk or read the news, households are nearly always referred to as families, as if other household types do not exist.
Single people in retirement are more likely to live in poverty than those who are not single, yet not one targeted measure towards this group has been introduced over the cost-of-living or housing crisis. Most of these measures are aimed at easing the burden on mainly two-income families and talk of the upcoming budget does not seem to stray from this path.
It is near impossible for one income to compete with two. Higher taxation is paid at the same income, yet far less benefit is accrued.
The gender pay gap also impacts, as do wages for traditional “woman’s jobs” such as teaching and nursing. All of this feeds into having less saved for retirement.
The Government has continually looked at providing parents with additional protected leave over the last number of years.
This is not a bad thing and often necessary with childcare shortages.
However, for those without children, there is no acknowledgement of life’s ups and downs and no protected leave to deal with life situations, family illness and various other issues that crop up.
Taoiseach Simon Harris said he wants Ireland to be the best country for children to grow up in and, while an admirable ambition, if you are not a child or do not have children you are out of the picture.
While we can recoil in horror at Mr Vance’s comments, we must also look at ourselves and our outdated attitudes, as these voters vote too. – Yours, etc,
NIAMH BYRNE,
Fairview,
Dublin 3.