Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 1 July 2014
103. Deputy Mick Wallace asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade his views on the potential participation of the British royal family in the centenary commemoration of the 1916 Easter Rising; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24465/14]
View answerThe centenary of the Rising in 2016 will be the centre-piece of the Government’s decade of commemorations programme. The format and programme for the 2016 commemoration in Dublin is still under consideration. In September 2013, in my speech to the British-Irish Association, I noted a responsibility to be attentive and respectful of all traditions on this island in our approach to the decade of commemorations. In that spirit of inclusion, I expressed the hope that the Government would host representatives of the British Royal Family and the British Government, along with leaders of Irish unionism, in Dublin to mark the centenary of the Easter Rising. The commemoration will be a unique opportunity to promote Ireland internationally. In that context, the attendance of Ireland’s international partners, including representatives from Britain, will be considered in the coming period.
