The Health Minister Leo Varadkar has appealed for both sides of the same-sex marriage referendum "keep it respectful", after photos on social media showed a number of posters being ripped down.

Supporters of the Yes and No campaigns have exchanged accusations of posters across the country being tampered with or removed in recent days.

It is claimed the Referendum Commission has received dozens of complaints about a poster from the No side, which reads "Surrogacy? She needs her mother for life, not just nine months".

The Referendum Commission told The Irish Times it had received "loads" of calls about the poster.

However the secretary of the Commission said the body offers impartial information and will not get involved in the debate or penalise a particular group for disseminating false or misleading information.

Mr Varadkar says he has not seen any examples of posters being removed himself, but he has called on voters to keep the debate respectful.