Today's guest is government minister Josepha Madigan. I was almost fearful of having a politician on, somehow they don't get the same maverick kudos of someone leading a grassroots movement, often they are met with an eyeroll and some cynicism but the reality is that changing legislation and representing the will of the people is one of the most central and powerful changemaker roles.
Myself and Josepha met when we sat together at a breakfast event for Spinal Injuries Ireland. I was struck by her warmth and her openness and when I contacted her office a couple of weeks later to invite her on she was immediately accessible and agreed.
Jospeha is a busy woman, her current remit is Minister of State for Special Education and Inclusion. She started out as a family law solicitor and witnessing the pain people went through during family breakdown, upon her election as TD she worked to bring about the divorce referendum in 2019 which saw an amendment to the separation duration for divorce eligibility reducing it from 4 years to 2. This had a massive impact on people's lives.
Regardless of your political persuasion, this is a podcast based on people wanted to make a difference and I think you'll hear from Joespha that this is who she is, motivated by people and the stories they tell, she has positioned herself as someone who can make legislative and funding changes as well as using her voice to speak on issues in the media and the Dail. She spoke out recently about her personal experience of gender based violence, something she did not need to do but felt compelled to as she saw an injustice she understood.
Today we talk about that, about the divorce referendum and the importance of accountability for our policy makers.
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