Bertie Ahern (Dublin Central, Fianna Fail)

I reiterate my comments about the St. Andrews Agreement. Subject to the legislation being passed and the Attorney General being happy that nothing will happen over the next week or so, there should no reason to hold a referendum here. On passage of the legislation, as I understand it, the Assembly will cease in its transitional form at the end of January and an election will be held on 7 March next year. However, the Attorney General will conduct a final examination when the legislation is enacted.

As the Deputy correctly said, children's rights issues have been raised by many groups at national, EU and UN level. Many issues were raised a decade ago when Ken Whitaker chaired a constitutional review group. The Minister of State, Deputy Brian Lenihan, has made numerous comments about these issues.

When one looks at what is or is not to be included, the main thing is for the Constitution to be amended to include the welfare principle and to provide an express guarantee of certain other children's rights that derive from the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. The case comes from that convention. The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, in examining our report on the implementation of the convention over the past number of years and particularly since 1998 — it arises every two years — is of the opinion "that Ireland's approach to the rights of the child appears to be somewhat fragmented". We have given an undertaking to deal with that issue, which has been highlighted by many eminent people and people working in the field.

The All-Party Committee on the Constitution, in its review of the Articles dealing with the family and after examining what the Minister of State, Deputy Brian Lenihan, and others have said, recommended that a new section should be inserted in Article 41 dealing with the rights of children. The committee stated:

All children, irrespective of birth, gender, race or religion, are equal before the law. In all cases, where the welfare of the child so requires, regard shall be had to the best interests of that child.

Many groups, including three notable ones — the Ombudsman for Children, the Children's Rights Alliance and the Law Society — criticised those recommendations strongly and trenchantly. The Minister of State then brought forward some of those arguments in his statement to the UN during the summer. He has furthered his consideration of the matter and it is best that it be discussed by him because he has prepared his case and presentation to bring the issue forward.

From what Irish groups, including the Ombudsman for Children and others, have said, what has been said in court cases — not just the Baby Ann case, but several others — and what is stated in European law and international law in the various conventions, we must address this issue. It is not simple. The Deputy mentioned the issues and sensitivities around the family, a side on which there are counter views. We must make our best efforts to resolve this issue.

Some people outside the House have purported that this matter is new and has jumped up from somewhere, but it is not new. The first references discussed in the House followed the 1996 report, which took from reports that were six years or seven years old. It is quite an old issue.

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