Dara Murphy (Cork North Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the presentation by the Minister of the wording of the forthcoming referendum on children's rights. As she is sitting in front of me, I take the opportunity to compliment her on the work she has done to date. This is the first truly all-party issue to have come before the House since I was elected, in the sense that we have put aside our political differences in the interests of children who unquestionably comprise our most important resource. While politics is an adversarial business, it has to be acknowledged that everybody has come together in this instance. The importance of the referendum cannot be understated in that context.

In the light of the Government's commitment to hold a number of referendums, it has been suggested some sort of league table should be drawn up to categorise them in order of importance. As someone who has three children, it should be beyond question that nothing is more important to Irish people than how our youngest and most vulnerable citizens are treated, protected and cared for. Our history as a people is by no means perfect in this regard. Much of what we have been reading in recent days should reinforce the ambition of the people to start the process of making a statement about ourselves and our intentions as a people, race and nation. Perhaps the most positive aspect of the referendum is that it gives us an opportunity to begin to effect real change for everybody in the country. I do not believe the referendum will affect the vast majority. I hope and pray it will not. It will serve to protect the important institution of the family.

The State's child protection agencies were required in 30,000 cases last year, some 16,000 of which involved children and some 1,500 involved suspected child sexual abuse. I remind the House that the Proclamation of the Republic states "the Republic guarantees religious and civil liberty, equal rights and equal opportunities to all its citizens, and declares its resolve to pursue the happiness and prosperity of the whole nation and of all its parts, cherishing all of the children of the nation equally". Many believe that quotation comes from Bunreacht na hÉireann, a copy of which I can see on the Minister's desk, but that is not the case. In a newspaper article today an esteemed judge writes that he believes this reference should have been inserted in the Constitution when it was drawn up. I suggest it is not too late to place it in the Constitution.

It is important to remind the House that organisations such as the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children and Barnardos have been supporting the calls for the referendum to be arranged. In recent years many reports have called for this constitutional protection to be put in place. It is incumbent on all of us to encourage strong and vibrant debate and explain the four key areas covered in this proposal - protecting children, supporting families, removing the inequalities in the current adoption regime and truly recognising children in their own right for the first time. The last of these four areas is perhaps the most important because there is a need to take the constitutionally protected views of children into account. It is of paramount importance that we provide for this in the Constitution.

I again compliment the Minister. I encourage those of us who can influence people on the ground to talk to them in order that it cannot be said on 10 November next that the public is uninformed. It is part of our job as elected representatives to meet people and give them the information they want. I will certainly be doing this.

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