Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)

It is not for me to decide here on the floor of the House whether I should hold a referendum. That is a matter for Government to propose and for the Oireachtas to dispose of. The Government has no plans to hold a referendum on blasphemy in the immediate future. However, as the Deputy knows, the programme for Government did indicate the possibility of referendums on a number of issues being considered by the Joint Committee on the Constitutional Amendment on Children and these may very well take place in the near future; I do not know. In addition, the Government has indicated that at some stage between now and the end of the Government's term of office, we will hold a referendum on the setting up of a court of civil appeal. If we were to have a number of referendums on one day, it would be appropriate to put to the people a question on the section of the Constitution relating to blasphemous and seditious libel.

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