THE TANAISTE, Mr Spring, has pledged to ensure that disabled people are given the protection afforded by the Employment Equality Bill, which the Supreme Court struck down on Thursday.
If it is necessary to hold a constitutional referendum to provide this protection, he said, this would be done. The Supreme Court found that the three sections of the Bill - including one seeking to outlaw discrimination on the grounds of disability - were unconstitutional.
The Bill would have required employers to make specified arrangements for disabled employees, but the court found the cost this would have imposed on employers was an unjustified attack on their property rights.
The Irish Council of People with Disabilities expressed dismay at the court's ruling.
It said the Irish draft of the European Treaty showed the necessity for an Irish constitutional referendum to include a non-discrimination clause on the basis of disability.