Emer Higgins is the Minister of State with responsibility for Business, Employment and Retail. She was elected TD for Dublin Mid West in the 2020 General Election, previously serving as Equality Spokesperson for Fine Gael and as Governor of UCD from 2018 – 2023. In 2021, Deputy Higgins introduced the Irish Corporate Governance (Gender Balance) Bill, which aims to ensure Irish companies achieve significant gender balance on their boards, fostering a more inclusive business environment.

Emer is a strong advocate for women in education and business and her work across various Oireachtas Committees; Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Disability Matters, Public Petitions, and Special Committees; Assisted Dying and International Surrogacy, reflects her wide-ranging commitment to equality. Previously, Minister Higgins worked as Chief of Staff for PayPal’s Customer Service division in Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA), bringing over a decade of corporate expertise to the table working with both Small and Medium Size Businesses (SMEs) and multinational companies.