Politics

Two referenda on the role of care in the home and definition of family to take place in March

Following recommendations from an Oireachtas committee and the citizens assembly, the government will hold both referenda on International Women’s Day next year

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said the constitution would continue to explicitly protect the institution of marriage, but that it was time for the constitution to “catch up with contemporary reality”. Picture: RollingNews.ie

Two referenda will be held on March 8 next year to replace the constitutional provision for the woman’s place in the home and to extend protections for the family to a wider definition beyond marital families.

Following recommendations from an Oireachtas committee and the citizens assembly, the government will hold the first referendum to amend Article 41 of the Constitution to provide for a wider concept of family. The second referendum will be to delete ...