In regard to the very successful visit of President Joe Biden, there are times when visits such as this cause us all to reflect on the extraordinary power of our global Irish community. This is something we celebrate, and rightly so. The Minister and I have had a real, in-depth experience of encountering and working with that power and that community in so many different locations throughout this planet. However, we are hopelessly out of step when we seek to support our citizens in electing our first citizen - that person who best embodies who we are as a people, our President. We are hopelessly out of step with other countries in giving our citizens the right, no matter where they live on this planet, to elect our first citizen. When is it planned to hold that referendum that has been committed to in the programme for Government? It is about time that we gave recognition to those of our citizens, including those who live on this island, who cannot exercise that right.

I wish first to recognise the role of the Deputy in building that connection with the Irish diaspora throughout the world when he was Minister of State with that brief. He made a significant impact. He and I discussed many times the commitment that the Government has made to extend voting rights to Irish people living abroad for presidential elections. I am still committed to this. It is part of the programme for Government. It requires a referendum, of course, which is not straightforward. In some ways, we have been prevented in recent years from holding referendums through the Covid period, which has made it more complicated because we have a series of referendums that the Government wants to deliver between now and the next election. This is one of them. I do not have a date for the Deputy but I confirm that it is my understanding that the Government’s intention is still to hold a referendum in this space before the next election.