Following on from Ireland’s Second Report on the implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (July, 2005),

the Ferns Report (October, 2005)and the All-Party Oireachtas Committee on the Constitution Tenth Progress Report: The Family (January, 2006),

in November, 2006 the Government announced its intention to hold a Constitutional Referendum on children.

The Minister for Children initiated a process of consultation and discussion with the other Parliamentary parties and with

all relevant groups, with the aim of achieving consensus on the wording of an appropriate amendment regarding the

 place of children in the Constitution. The aim was tofind a wording that would reflect the desire of the Irish people to

 establish robust safeguards for all children and that enshrines the very highest possible standards for

 the protection of children. 

Government publishes the wording on the Constitutional Amendment on Children

The Government published the Twenty-eighth Amendment of the Constitution Bill, 2007 in February 2007. It can be downloaded below.

The Bill contains the Government’s proposals to amend the Constitution in respect of children.

• Press Release (Word doc)
• Speech (Word doc)
• Briefing note on proposed amendment
• Outline of Legislative Proposals
• Speech by An Taoiseach on publication of 28th Amendment of the Constitution
• Twenty-eighth Amendment of the Constitution Bill 2007