The mother and father whose family were used in a poster for the No side of the gay marriage referendum say they want the measure to pass on May 22nd.

Earlier this week, comedian Adam Hills posted on Facebook - saying he knew the family in the 'Mothers and Fathers Matter' poster - and that they were surprised and upset at the use of their image.

The family, who are expecting their second child in June, say do not want to be the poster family for the No side in this referendum.

Colm O'Gorman, executive director of Amnesty International Ireland, told Newstalk Lunchtime he does not understand why Mothers and Fathers Matter did not use their own image.

In a statement, the family says: "We were surprised and upset to see that the photo was being used as part of a campaign with which we do not agree."

"We completely support same-sex marriage, and we believe that same-sex couples' should of course be able to adopt, as we believe that they are equally able to provide children with much-needed love and care."

"To suggest otherwise is offensive to us, and to many others," they add.

While in a statement, Mothers and Fathers Matter have criticised the focus on the photo, saying: "We're just worried that next week Colm O’Gorman will be shocked and appalled as he discovers the family in the Coke ads actually likes Pepsi".

Independent Senator Ronan Mullen, who is calling for a No vote, told Moncrieff - presented by Tara Duggan - that the media is being too soft on the Yes side.

The revamped Yes poster | Image: Amnesty

The family have asked Amnesty International Ireland to release the following statement on their behalf:

"In 2014, as a young family, we did a photo shoot with a photographer friend to get some nice shots for the family album. No money was exchanged - we got nice photos for free, they got nice images for their portfolio. As part of this agreement, we agreed to let them upload them to a stock photo album. We knew that these were available for purchase and we gave permission. Perhaps, naïvely, we imagined that on the off chance that any was ever selected, it might be for a small magazine or website.

To confirm, we have not received any money for the photo - then or now, and nor do we expect any.

We were surprised and upset to see that the photo was being used as part of a campaign with which we do not agree. We completely support same-sex marriage, and we believe that same-sex couples' should of course be able to adopt, as we believe that they are equally able to provide children with much-needed love and care. To suggest otherwise is offensive to us, and to many others.

No one can convince us that life-long unions of so many loving same-sex couples here in the UK and in Ireland, are inferior to heterosexual unions, and it is important to us that our many gay friends know that we feel this way. Discrimination on the grounds of sexuality has no place in the 21st century. If we were residents of Ireland, not the UK, we would vote Yes for marriage equality.

In a free society, everyone has the right to express their opinion and campaign for what they feel is right.

We are not lawyers and therefore cannot comment on whether the use of the photo violates any terms and conditions regarding use of stock photos of children for political use, though we are interested to know more about this.

We are unhappy that the image of us was used for a political campaign as legally this seems a bit of a grey area, and we would have expected that for a big campaign like this, Mothers & Fathers Matter might have sought out images of people who represent their views. We are aware of the offer from Mothers & Fathers Matter for dialogue and are deciding whether to pursue this.

We look forward to raising our son (in the picture) and our second child (due in June) to be open-minded and unafraid of change, and to respect all colours, creeds and sexualities etc. Above all we hope that children in Ireland, will be guaranteed the equality that our children enjoy, and will be able to grow up in a society which guarantees them full equality before the law, no matter who they love when they eventually go on to form adult, loving, committed relationships."