Gay Mitchell
Question:5 Mr. G. Mitchell asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will make a statement on the current situation in Northern Ireland. [4298/00]
Written Answers. - Northern Ireland Issues.
The creation of the institutions in December was not only a major step forward in the implementation of the Good Friday Agreement, it also brought immediate and tangible benefits to the people of Northern Ireland and the island as a whole.
For the first time, an Executive in Northern Ireland, fully representative of both communities, has been taking decisions and implementing policy on behalf of people to whom it is directly accountable. The Assembly has been working well, debating issues, scrutinising the work of Ministers, and fulfilling its role as a legislative body. Through the North-South Ministerial Council, and building on the success of its inaugural meeting in Armagh on 13 December, Ministers from North and South have been carrying forward important work in their meetings in sectoral format, four of which have now taken place. The Implementation Bodies have made an impressive start to tackling their areas of responsibility. The British-Irish Council and the British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference have identified and agreed key areas which will constitute their initial programmes of work.
Given this rapid and encouraging start, it is particularly disappointing and frustrating that the operation of the Assembly and the Executive has been suspended, and the IRA representative has withdrawn from engagement with the International Commission on Decommissioning.
I can assure the House that the Taoiseach and I, together with our officials, did all in our power to avoid suspension. Following receipt of the progress report of the commission on 31 January, we engaged in an intensive series of meetings and contacts with the British Government and with all of the relevant parties, beginning with my meeting in Dublin with the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland on 1 February.
As a result of those discussions, and in particular those between the Government and Sinn Féin, the international commission was able to make a positive and significant report to the two Governments on 11 February. However, as the House will be aware, the presentation of that report coincided with the suspension of the Executive and Assembly.
This is undoubtedly a grave setback but, rather than spending valuable time seeking to apportion blame, we must continue to channel all of our energies into securing the earliest possible restoration of the operation of the institutions.
This afternoon the Taoiseach is meeting Prime Minister Blair in London, and they will both meet representatives of the SDLP, the UUP and Sinn Féin. On Monday I had two meetings with the Secretary of State in Belfast in which we took stock of the present situation and agreed the necessity to move forward as quickly as possible. Since the start of the week I have also met all of the pro-Agreement parties in the Assembly – Sinn Féin, the UUP, the Alliance Party, the Northern Ireland Women's Coalition and the Progressive Unionist Party and, together with the Taoiseach, the SDLP. In all of these meetings I have been struck by the clear determination on all sides to find a speedy resolution to our current difficulties.
That is the positive side. However, it is clear to me that there is a continuing and large deficit of trust. All parties will need assurance that the Agreement, in all of its aspects, is going to be implemented in full.
As we work to secure progress, it is worth recalling the words of Senator Mitchell on publication of his final report in November when he stated that the one thing which is certain is that, without the institutions, there will be no decommissioning. The fact that the IRA representative will not for now engage further with the commission is deeply regrettable and disappointing. Senator Mitchell also observed that prolonging the stalemate will leave society in the North uncertain and vulnerable. That remains the case. The recent bomb in Irvinestown is a stark reminder that there are still those who would seek to bring down the Agreement and who stand ready to fill any political vacuum that we allow develop.
We urgently need to bring the institutions back into operation – they are central to the Agreement – and the IRA must also re-engage with the international commission. The operation of the institutions has been an unqualified success. They make many things, including decommissioning, possible. I know that all of the parties are genuine and sincere in their wish to make early progress, but they, with the Governments, must now redouble their efforts and stretch their respective constituencies to the maximum.