Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)

We have had to press repeatedly to get clarity as to the Government's intentions regarding the proposal put forward by an all-party Oireachtas committee on a referendum to enshrine children's rights in the Constitution. This has taken many forms in the House in recent months, including a Private Members' motion tabled jointly by the Labour Party and Sinn Féin. There is a continuous and consistent effort on the part of all of those who gave service in the all-party Joint Committee on the Constitutional Amendment on Children, including its former chairperson, the Taoiseach's party colleague, Deputy Mary O'Rourke, to urge certainty as to the Government's intention regarding the children's referendum in the current year. Will the Taoiseach give a clear indication of when he proposes to hold the referendum? Have deliberations between the respective interested Ministries and the Office of the Attorney General concluded? Is the Cabinet of a mind to proceed with a referendum to enshrine children's rights in the Constitution? Will the Taoiseach, with but a week remaining in the current Dáil term, give certainty and clarity on this issue? On our return after the summer recess, all political parties and independent voices in the House have a collective and shared job of work to do in ensuring the successful conduct of a referendum with an ultimate positive result in the interest of children first and foremost.

See this speech in context