The Catholic bishops are to examine the wording of the proposed children’s rights amendment but will not issue a statement about it until after their March quarterly meeting at the earliest. A spokesman for the Bishops made the comment after the wording of the proposed amendment was announced on Monday.

Announcing the amendment, which will replace Article 42.5 of the Constitution Taoiseach Bertie Ahern reassured voters that it will not alter the rights currently enjoyed by the family.

Mr Ahern said the amendment would not “undermine the role of parents or the constitutional safeguards for the family”. Brian Lenihan, the Minister of State for Children added that, if the amendment were passed “it will be neither easier nor more difficult for a child to be taken into care”.

The Government was worried about opposition to the wording from pro-family and parents’ rights groups, including the Catholic Church. The Church is still studying the wording, and no response will be forthcoming until after the Bishops meet in Maynooth in early March for their latest quarterly meeting.

At Monday’s press launch of the wording, Mr Lenihan added that the Government was “in total agreement with (Supreme Court judge) Mr Justice Hardiman who, in a recent much publicised Supreme Court decision, said the welfare of the child is best secured in his or her natural family. Nothing in this amendment seeks to change that position.”

The amendment, which contains five article and eight separate clauses, could go before voters in the spring, before the General Election, but is more likely to be delayed until after the election. Announcing the wording, Mr Ahern said he was committed to putting the referendum to the people “whether before the general election, or in the autumn”.

The Government is determined that the Dáil and Seanad will pass the legislation necessary to order a referendum to be held within 90 days, he stressed.

The new wording will replace the current Article 42.5, which currently allows the State to “supply the place of the parents” where parents “fail in their duty” towards their children. The new Article, Article 42(A) provides that the State can intervene in the case of “any child”, no matter what the marital status of their parents.

The new wording will also provide for the voluntary adoption of children of married parents, something which is not currently not possible.

The proposed amendment will also allow for laws enabling “the collection and exchange of information relating to the endangerment, sexual exploitation or sexual abuse” of children. It will also allow the Government to make sexual intercourse with someone under the age of 18 a “strict liability”offence, that is, a crime allowing of no defence once the fact of sexual intercourse is proven.

This is intended to address the problem created by the decision of the Supreme Court last summer which held that the old legislation governing this area, which made sexual intercourse with a minor a strict liability offence, was unconstitutional, as it did not allow for a defence of “honest mistake”.

Children’s rights groups, such as Barnardo’s, the Children’s Rights Alliance and the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children gave a cautious welcome to the proposal, as did the Ombudsman for Children, Emily Logan.

However, both Ms Logan and Barnardo’s said that time was needed to debate the wording.