On a personal note, as a Family Carer, I would like to thank everyone who voted No in the Referendum. The so-called Carers Referendum offered Carers nothing. It was a mere husk of a Referendum in terms of Rights and Obligations. It allowed the Government put Care right back as the sole responsibility of Families. It made no mention at all of the Rights of People with Disabilities.

As a party we are very pleased with the outcome, it demonstrates a rejection of a deeply flawed referendum on family and an empty marketing referendum on Care.

I think the result shows that the major political parties in this country are extremely out of touch with the electorate.
This referendum represents a lack of trust, not just in the government, but also in Sinn Fein, Labour, the Soc Dems and PBP. There is a growing disconnect between the political establishment and the people, and that includes most of the opposition as well.
Aontú was the only party in the Dáil to actually listen to people and their concerns and this has been reflected in the result.

It’s time all of the parties in Leinster House asked themselves how they got this so wrong.
What the government need to do now is actually work on real, tangible support for our citizens rather than focussing on virtue signalling rhetoric. I think what the people of Ireland want is for the government to tackle the bread and butter issues – health, housing, the cost of living, childcare, farming.

These referendums represented peak virtue signalling from the government. The Yes side were caught spreading misinformation on multiple occasions. When it looked like the No side might win, Minister’s started promising welfare reforms as a reward for a yes vote.
The government need to stop with the culture wars and start fixing our broken systems – reform of the carers allowance should be on the priority list now.