Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

On 10 November the Irish people will have the opportunity to go to the polls and do something historic. They can vote for or against an amendment to the Constitution that proposes to treat children as individuals in their own right for the first time in the Republic of Ireland. It is 20 years since Ireland ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. In the coming months, the Government hopes to submit Ireland’s update report on implementation of the convention to the United Nations. It is fair to say that this country has been making progress in the past 18 months, but that in the 20 previous years we have seen a litany of reports each more disturbing and more heart-scalding than the next. They are 17 damning indictments of the failure of society and politics to guarantee the safety of children.

As a politician and a father this affected me no more than many others. On coming to office it was my privilege to be able to appoint a full Cabinet Minister for children for the first time in the State in the person of Deputy Frances Fitzgerald. I was and remain of the view that the children of this country deserved rather more than luck for their safety They must be able to rely on more than ‘happy faults’ to secure their innocence, integrity, and their future itself. Moreover, I and the Government wanted to make this not just their social entitlement but their constitutional right. This is a quantum change in a society where for too long children were seen and not heard. The best place for children is within a loving and supportive home. The referendum does not seek to change that. Time and again, unfortunately, we have seen cases where a family for whatever reason - has failed or were unable to protect a child. Not only that, but in some tragic cases, the family itself - as in the Roscommon case - was the most dangerous and damaging place for a child to be. I wish to allay the fears of good and responsible parents that this will be a charter for trespass into their family’s lives. It will not. Great care has been taken to ensure that it is not and can never be.

Since taking office, the Minister, Deputy Fitzgerald, and the Government have been working on the wording of the amendment. Many Members of the House have worked hard over many years to reach this day. The work of the All-Party Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Constitutional Amendment on Children has been an invaluable contribution; equally the efforts and contribution of campaigners, organisations and professionals who work with children and members of the legal profession must be acknowledged. The Bill before the House proposes a new stand-alone Article 42A, titled ‘Children’, which will contain a series of provisions and will be put to the people as one, single, question for their approval. The proposed constitutional amendment forms part of the wider and urgent reform agenda. In terms of child protection, specifically, we have introduced a wide range of reforms through the Criminal Justice (Withholding of Information on Offences Against Children and Vulnerable Persons) Act, the publication of the Children First Bill which will put the Children First national guidelines for child protection on a statutory basis and the National Vetting Bureau (Children and Vulnerable Persons) Bill. Child protection and support services are having a radical, long-overdue and much-needed overhaul through the establishment of the new Child and Family Support Agency. They are all vital reforms. However, as the Minister, Deputy Fitzgerald, emphasised last night, none of the reforms can have the wide-ranging and permanent effect of the proposed constitutional change.

The Government is committed - as we did with the European stability referendum earlier this year - to ensure that people have all the information they need to make an informed decision on the 10 November. To facilitate that, an information website, , has been set up by the Department of Children and Youth Affairs. It provides information on the constitutional amendment as well as details of the wider reform programme under way in the area of child protection. A Government information booklet will also be sent to each household in the country.

The proposed referendum offers children a second chance to have a family. The wording removes the inequalities in current adoption law. The Minister, Deputy Fitzgerald, highlighted to the House last night that there are approximately 6,250 children in care placements at present, with more than 5,500 of the children in foster families. The focus is already on family care. More than 2,000 of the children have been with the same family for more than five years. The legislation may offer them the opportunity to create an even stronger family bond in the future.

Every day all over this country parents put their own fears and worries aside to give their sons and daughters the best, most secure, respectful and loving life they can even in the most difficult circumstances. Our children are our most precious possession. Every child - regardless of the circumstances of their birth - should be allowed not just to feel valued, but to be valued under the law as the invaluable, irreplaceable beings they are. I am proud to speak as Taoiseach on a proposal to amend the basic law to the effect that: "The State recognises and affirms the natural and imprescriptible rights of all children and shall, as far as practicable, by its laws protect and vindicate those rights.” I urge everyone, in particular parents, and others tasked with the safety of children to make every effort to inform themselves on what this referendum is about. The wording of the amendment is careful and cautious. It is formed from cross-party concern and with cross-party support, which I appreciate. We have heard many thoughtful speeches in this House on the Bill and I look forward to hearing more. I urge everyone to use their power as democrats to make come out and make a resounding statement in favour of the children of this country, not just for now but for generations to come.

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