Fergus Finlay, Chief Executive of Barnardos, has claimed that “a Constitutional referendum is urgently needed” to protect children. In a statement, he said he was dismayed by signals from the Government indicating that they were backing away from holding such a referendum on the issue of “children's rights”.

The “ prevailing culture and social agenda” being pursued by the EU appears to be predominantly secular and hostile to religion, according to the Catholic Primate of Ireland, Cardinal Sean Brady.

A newly created EU human rights body, the Fundamental Rights Agency (FRA), has called for binding EU regulations to force member states to legalise same-sex marriage.

Pensioners outnumber children in the UK for the first time as more and more people live longer, according to new figures.

Parents in the UK are facing a severe shortage of childminders after bureaucracy prompted thousands to abandon the profession. According to new Government figures, more than 8,000 people have given up offering child care in England in just four years, more than a tenth of the total.

Children from bigger families are happier, healthier and more successful, according to a new report from British think tank Civitas. The study also suggests that the middle-classes are made to feel that large families impact negatively on the environment and damage their careers.

Forty per cent of married women with dependent children stay at home to look after them, according to new labour force figures from the CSO.

The INTO have described calls by Fine Gael for immigrants to be separated from other students until they can speak English as 'discriminatory, inequitable and deeply flawed'. They have also suggested that the proposal could be challenged legally.

An article in next month's Intercom magazine has condemned the “uncontrolled use of AHR [Assisted Human Reproductive] technology” saying that this could “lead to unforeseeable consequences for civil society”.

London has been dubbed “the divorce capital of the world”, according to one leading UK family lawyer. The city is awarded the title because England is thought to be “the best divorce jurisdiction” for foreign claimants, according to James Turner, QC, a counsel involved in top family law cases.

Dutch authorities are now giving de facto recognition to polygamous marriages, according to a report in Dutch newspaper, NRC Handelsblad. Although polygamy is banned in the Netherlands, the marriages of Muslims who have several wives are recognised by Dutch authorities.

Professor Robert Winston, one of the UK's top IVF experts, has said that fertility clinics are ignoring a more successful fertility treatment in favour of IVF for commercial reasons.

The Government will not issue a directive to schools on the wearing of the Islamic hijab headscarf in schools, according to Minister of State for Integration Conor Lenihan. Mr Lenihan said that the wearing of the headscarf was “not an issue” in most schools.

The Department of Education said it would "consider" criticisms made yesterday by Chair of the Bishops' Commission on Education, Bishop Leo O'Reilly of the Department's claimed policy preference for multi-denominational education.

The Chair of the Bishops' Commission on Education, Dr Leo O'Reilly, has said the principle of parental choice must be central to education provision. Citing a poll conducted on behalf of the Iona Institute, he said that parents were overwhelmingly in favour of having the right to choose denominational education.

The Government is now looking at using legislation rather than a referendum to address concerns relating to children's rights, according to Minister for State for Children, Barry Andrews. In an interview with the Irish Times, the Minister indicated that he believed that issues such as the best interest of the child could be addressed through legislation.

Parents in receipt of the Lone Parent Allowance will be assigned welfare advisers within months of the birth of their children to help direct them towards training, education and work opportunities, under a new Government scheme.

A Labour MP has tabled a motion in Parliament that would eliminate the freedom of religious conscience of public servants. The move comes in the wake of a ruling last month in which a Christian marriage registrar who refused to carry out homosexual marriages was found to have been discriminated against on the grounds of religion.

Hundreds of Irishwomen are travelling to clinics across the Continent to receive IVF treatment using eggs donated from young European women.

Childless couples are taking advantage of cheaper treatment, shorter waiting lists and a larger number of donors at clinics in Spain, the Czech Republic and Crete.

Spain, which has a reputation for high standards of fertility treatment, has emerged as the most favoured country for such couples. Dr Raul Olivares, director of the international department at the Instituto Marques clinic in Barcelona, says his clinic has treated 70 Irishwomen so far this year, compared with about 50 for the whole of 2007. Most are aged between 40 and 45.

Spanish law guarantees anonymity for donors and payment of expenses for donors. Legislation passed by the Spanish parliament in 2006 means there is no limit on the number of eggs that can be inseminated.

Spanish law also allows eggs to be donated to lesbians and single women. The forbids the naming of the donor, so that children cannot discover the identity biological mothers. Spanish women, usually university students, typically receive about €900 in expenses.

Fertility treatment in Ireland remains unregulated. A report from the Government-appointed Commission on Assisted Human Reproduction (CAHR) made a series of proposals on legislation to regulate the fertility industry in Ireland.

While the report recommended that children conceived by IVF or other fertility treatments be allowed to find out who their donor parents are, it failed to take account of the need of a child conceived through AHR for a mother and father. The report included proposals to allow single people and same sex couples to use fertility treatment.

Joanna Rose, who was conceived through Artificial Insemination 35 years ago, says that the interests of children produced through donor conception have been silenced in the debate over Assisted Human Reproduction (AHR).

At a talk given to the Iona Institute earlier this year, she pointed out that discussion on the issues presented by AHR has focused solely on the plight of infertile couples. Meanwhile, the complex emotional and psychological issues faced by the children conceived through AHR were being swept under the carpet.

Helen Brown, co-founder and chairwoman of the National Infertility Support Group, is concerned about Irishwomen who travel further afield than Spain for IVF treatments and also about the eastern European women who are paid for their eggs. “I would suggest that anyone going to a clinic abroad ask where the eggs are sourced from. It would upset me if any of these women were being exploited,” she said.

Meanwhile, a UK couple have broken new ground by having a baby using an IVF technique which fast-freezes embryos. The baby girl, Evie, who was conceived through "vitrification", was born to Ian and Rebecca Bloomer on 23 July.

The method uses liquid nitrogen to freeze embryos quickly, reducing the risk of damage when they are thawed. The technique - vitrification - gives embryos a better chance of surviving until couples are ready to try IVF again because the fast-freeze method prevents the formation of crystals that can damage embryos when they are thawed.

Children who watch more than three hours of television a day have more behaviour problems than other children, according to a new study.