Environment Minister Phil Hogan (pictured) has said that the Government will set up a Constitutional Convention “in the next few weeks”.

The Convention will look at issues such as same-sex marriage, removing the clause on women in the home, and removing the offence of blasphemy from the Constitution.

Speaking on RTE’s News At One programme yesterday, Mr Hogan said the Convention would “deal with a number of matters including proposals for the abolition of the Seanad and other Constitutional matters which have been highlighted in the Programme for Government.”

He said that the Convention would sit for 12 months, and would provide the opportunity for the public to consult.

Mr Hogan said: “I think the Constitutional Convention is set up for the purpose of evaluating the Constitution in its broadest sense and both parties who signed up for the Programme for Government understand that this is an opportunity for the citizen to engage”.

He said it was possible that the Convention might tour the country, in a similar manner to the Forum for Europe. Such a process, he suggested, would put the Government “in a better position to decide what proposals” to put in a referendum or referenda.

The proposal to abolish the Seanad would also be examined as part of the Convention process as there were “a lot of articles in the Constitution that require to be amended or changed or abolished to deal with the abolition of the Seanad if that’s the will of the people”.