The Cabinet is due to make a decision on same sex-marriage next week. Ministers are expected to back plans to hold a referendum before 2016.

Earlier this year the Constitutional Convention voted to recommend the extension of marriage rights to same-sex couples.

And the coalition has four months to respond with the deadline being next week.

Going into the Cabinet meeting this morning, the Taoiseach Enda Kenny was giving nothing away.

"I think the response from the government is due next week, actually...what we said was that we would respond within four months to the recommendations made by the different (Constitutional) Convention reports" he said.

With Labour saying this is the civil rights issue of our time, the coalition will commit to a referendum within the lifetime of the government.

While a Labour TD says a referendum is definitely going ahead. TD for Dublin North-West John Lyons spoke to Breakfast here on Newstalk.