Taoiseach Enda Kenny has said the Irish people will be denying rights to their “kith and kin” if they vote No in the upcoming same-sex marriage referendum.

Mr Kenny said he thought the vote on May 22nd would be closer than opinion polls had originally indicated. He said he was confident it would be passed, although he could not “call it”.

He asked: “Are the Irish people going to deny their own kith and kin the right to have a marriage contracted in civil law if that’s what they wish to do?”

Mr Kenny was interviewed on TV3's Ireland AM programme on Wednesday morning. He said 40,000 new people had registered to vote ahead of the referendum and he commended them for that.

He said the stories of ordinary people had brought him on a journey towards being in favour of same-sex marriage. The people would be asked a direct question, he said.

“We want to extend that right to two men and two women if their love each other and want to commit to a contract for life in the same way that I did when I got married.”

Turning to the tragedies of newborn babies who died in Portaloise hospital, Mr Kenny said the parents involved should not have been treated in the way that they were. “This is not Ireland,” he said.

He said the Health Information and Quality Authority (Hiqa) report on problems at the Midland Regional Hospital in Portlaoise had identified management issues.

Referring to Ireland’s improving economic situation, Mr Kenny said he had been contacted by Irish people abroad wondering if the time was right to return.

“I get calls myself from abroad, ‘Is it time to come back now?’ People coming back with experience, that’s great.”

On a lighter note towards the end of the interview, presenter Mark Cagney told Mr Kenny TV3 had "removed all vestiges" of the channel's late-night presenter Vincent Browne in case the Taoiseach was "allergic" to him.

Mr Kenny has declined to appear on Mr Browne’s show in recent years.

“I’m not allergic to Vincent. I see him in the Dáil on a regular basis,” Mr Kenny replied.