Politicians are currently out of touch with the public mood on the issue of gay marriage, Equality Authority chairwoman Angela Kerins suggested today.
Ms Kerins welcomed the passing of legislation allowing for civil partnerships to take place, but stressed the Equality Authority remained committed to seeing gay marriage introduced.
"If you look at the opinion polls now in relation to marriage equality the ordinary people of Ireland are really in support of it, the vast majority of people now are supporting equal marriage. So I think politicians will catch up with that," she said.
"The people of Ireland have come round and they're prepared for it and we just need the politicians to catch up with that…If the people of Ireland strongly support this, I think politicians will follow through to."
Ms Kerins said opinion polls had consistently showed a continuous increase in support for gay marriage. An Irish Times/Behaviour Attitudes poll in September of last year showed some 67 per cent of people felt gay couples should be allowed to marry.
In terms of support for gay couples being given the right to adopt children, 46 per cent were in favour with 38 per cent opposed.
However, Ms Kerins said all families should be treated equally and legislation had to keep up with changes in the make-up of Irish families.
She said the authority had been working on the area of family rights, particularly the rights of children and the involvement of fathers in their lives.
"The best interests of children require that the modern diversity of parenting arrangements be acknowledged in family law, so that the rights and responsibilities of both the mother and the father and all those in a parenting role are appropriately recognised," she added.
Referring to a possible merger between the Equality Authority and the Irish Human Rights Commission, Ms Kerins said she would prefer to see the agencies remain separate. However, she said she had no doubt that the management and staff of both agencies could work together to ensure a merged body could "deliver both missions with measurable outcomes".
All organisations involved in the promotion of equality should be operating together in a coordinated way that avoided duplication of effort, she added.
The Equality Authority receives grant-in-aid from the Government as well as funding from the European Union.
