Rónán Mullen (Independent) | Oireachtas source

There is no doubt that some former Attorneys General accede to places of great wisdom and insight but we are all wise enough to know that Attorneys General do not possess these crystal balls. The Minister is not willing to show us the small print.

Continuing to anchor the family to marriage gives us a reference point for what we understand a family to be in principle - a nuclear family and relationships based on kinship. It does not exclude other relationships and, as we have seen, our laws and court decisions are inclusive. When we then talk about non-marital families, it is clear what we mean - that the relationship between members, especially adults and children, includes kinship and is not arbitrary, thus allowing the State to trust generally in family members caring for each other, especially for the children, although that cannot be guaranteed-----