I understand the Minister for Justice and Equality briefed parties last week on the proposed referendum on removing the article in the Constitution on supporting women in the home. Unfortunately, our party was not invited to that but I hear on the grapevine that the Government seems intent on moving towards simply deleting the existing provision rather than considering alternative wording. Our party has had a very consistent role in saying that caring work matters. We would like to consider, and would support, the option of an alternative wording so that we would maintain within the Constitution an aspiration and a direction towards supporting work that is outside the paid economy.

We have a very tight timeline in the context of an October referendum. Will the Government consider a proper consultation process rather than going straight ahead and making a decision, which may be being made as we speak, on having a referendum which will be a simple deletion, thereby ruling out the option of alternative wording which we would propose and support?

That is a discussion that has been taking place at Cabinet during this question time. My understanding is that the legal advice available to Government makes a clear and strong recommendation that the most appropriate way to deal with this is simply to delete the section from the Constitution. Of course, there is a recognition that the discussion and debate around the importance of caring, the role of the home in Irish society and the recognition of a modern family structure, and all the diversity that should be recognised in that context in today's Ireland, is something the Government is anxious to deal with. Whether we can deal with that with a new wording in the Constitution in time for a referendum in the autumn is very unlikely.

What is the rush? It has been there for 80 years.

I believe the appropriate course of action is a simple deletion but also to put a process in place to deal with the other issues that have been raised.