Up to three gender equality referendums possible to address ‘discriminatory’ language

Wording for up to three referendums on gender equality will be published in the early summer, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said.

He said the referendum or referendums, to be held in November, would set Ireland on track to be “a world leader on gender equality in all its forms”.

The proposals will be to amend the Constitution on gender equality, the definition of “family” and the “place of women in the home”. It was not yet decided whether there would be one omnibus referendum covering all, or up to three.

Speaking alongside Minister for Equality Roderic O’Gorman and Minister for Education Norma Foley, the Taoiseach said enabling legislation would be published in advance of the vote setting out what exactly the proposed changes would mean in practice – legally, financially and in policy terms.

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Constitutional change was recommended by the Citizens’ Assembly on gender equality in 2021 and be a special joint Oireachtas committee last year, to remove or replace Articles 40.1, 41.1, 41.3, and, 41.2.

Article 40.1 says: “All citizens shall, as human people, [will be] be held equal before the law”, but does not refer explicitly to gender equality or non-discrimination.

Articles 41.1 and 41.3 define “the family as the natural primary and fundamental unit group of society”, and say “marriage” is the institution “on which the family is founded”.

Article 41.2 contains a recognition that “by her life within the home, woman gives to the State a support without which the common good cannot be achieved” and that the State shall therefore “endeavour to ensure that mothers shall not be obliged by economic necessity to engage in labour to the neglect of their duties in the home”.

Indicating some of the language in these was “discriminatory”, Mr Varadkar said it “doesn’t have a place in our Constitution in the 21st century”.

“We need to consider a more inclusive definition of family that goes beyond those solely based on marriage – reflecting what is the reality of modern Irish life.”

Setting out a “tight timeline” over the next eight months, the Taoiseach said an interdepartmental group would meet this month to tease out the implications of any proposed wording, with final proposals to be published in June.

“We believe we will have a referendum Bill, or Bills, enacted by the end of September subject to the co-operation of the Dáil and Seanad, after which referendum campaigns will commence, with a decision then made by the Irish people” in November, he added.

Asked whether he foresaw any pitfalls, or contentious issues, particularly around care work – what care work is valued and how it is valued – he said: “I don’t think anyone could possibly not want to recognise the role of care and carers in our Constitution, but I do think it will bring other questions to the fore – for example disability.

“Is that not going to be recognised in the Constitution as well? And also what does that mean in practice? ... Do we need to set out in legislation what this means?

“There’s never anything straightforward about changing the Constitution ... One thing we have to consider is how any change might be interpreted in the courts. We need to go into any Constitutional change with our eyes wide open in that regard and we also need to consider whether there should be enabling legislation.

“With the referendum for example on marriage equality, on repeal the 8th, on children, we didn’t just change the Constitution. We also published the enabling legislation to show people what this would mean in practice. All that has to be worked through over the next few months. And we also need to consider whether it will be one omnibus referendum or two or three referendums.”

The National Women’s Council said the proposed constitutional change would “recognise the reality of women’s lives and ambitions in modern Irish society, the true diversity of families, and the importance of care for all of society”.

One Family, which supports one-parent families, will be campaigning for a Yes vote, particularly on removing the special protection to families based on marriage. It said Article 41.1 and 41.3, “denies one-parent families the same constitutional protection as married families”.