asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs when the Government will ratify the Florence Agreement, 1952, and its protocol in view of the comments of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Secondary Legislation of the European Communities on 7 March 1979 contained in the report.
Written Answers. - Ratification of Florence Agreement.
170.
The Agreement on the Importation of Educational Scientific and Cultural Materials, also known as the Florence Agreement, drawn up in 1950 by the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), was formally accepted by Ireland in September, 1978, EEC Council Regulation 1978-75 which makes the terms of the Agreement applicable in the Community has been in force since 1 January, 1976.
At its Nineteenth General Conference in Nairobi in 1976 UNESCO adopted a Protocol to the Agreement which provides for an extension of the range of products covered by the agreement to include materials specially designed for the education, employment and social advancement of physically and mentally retarded persons. The Government has agreed that the protocol should be signed and ratified on behalf of Ireland. Signature by the acting permanent representative to the United Nations in New York will take place simultaneously with signature by representatives of the other EEC countries very shortly. It will then be open for ratification.