Family structure is a key factor in the economic mobility of children with the married family being most beneficial and divorce particularly harmful for children’s mobility, a new US study shows. The new findings come in a paper by the Pew Economic Mobility Project. Specifically, the study, Family Structure and the Economic Mobility of Children,...
The Government should hold a referendum on the Civil Partnership Bill, according to Senator John Hanafin (pictured) of Fianna Fail. Speaking in the Seanad this week, Senator Hanafin asked the Leader of the House to hold a debate on a referendum which he believed would be defeated. He said: “In light of the fact that...
The Minister for Education Mary Coughlan said she hoped to see the Catholic Church divesting itself of some its schools on a trial basis. Speaking yesterday in the Dáil, she pointed out that this option was originally suggested by Archbishop Diarmuid Martin in the context of the overall number of primary schools in his Dublin...
A seminar to promote surrogacy has been held in Dublin, organised by the Family Lawyers Association. The meeting discussed some of the legal difficulties with surrogacy which involves women agreeing to have children on behalf of third parties, a practice condemned by some critics as exploitative and for deliberately separating a child from its birth...
The clerical abuse scandals should not be used as a pretext to call into question the Church’s role in education, senators from both Fianna Fail and Fine Gael said yesterday. Responding to a call by Senator Ivana Bacik that the clerical abuse scandals should lead to a debate on Church patronage of primary schools, senators...
Catholic doctors in the UK face being struck off the medical register there if they observe their conscience by ignoring the wishes of terminally ill patients who want to die by refusing food and water, the General Medical Council (GMC) is to announce. New GMC guidelines will state that doctors must allow the terminally ill...
The qualifying period before cohabiting couples can apply for property, maintenance, pension and other rights under the Civil Partnership Bill was extended from three years to five years at a meeting of the cabinet yesterday. The amendment was recommended by Justice Minister, Dermot Ahern (pictured). No consideration was given to a conscience amendment despite calls...
The HSE has begun rolling out its cervical cancer vaccine for 12 year old girls. It will be administered in 21 schools this month with the follow-up injection in September. The HSE campaign plans to vaccinate over 30,000 teenage girls against the virus. The vaccine Gardasil is being offered free and will be administered in...
A heterosexual couple in Austria has taken the government there to court to have their relationship legally recognised as a “registered partnership” – a new form of civil union reserved only for same-sex couples. The couple, Helga Ratzenboeck and Martin Seydl claim not to want a traditional marriage and are arguing that the law should...
A survey of 200 second-level pupils found that a quarter of respondents said they received relationships and sexuality education last year. Minister Barry Andrews said he is concerned about the finding. However, the survey contradicts other work which says that there are high levels of participation in RSE programmes. However, it also found that the...
