Written Answers Nos. 830-841
830. Deputy Michael Colreavy asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he will provide a list of all funding awards provided to groups and organisations in Northern Ireland since 2005 for reconciliation. [41089/14]
View answerThrough the Reconciliation Fund, my Department awards funding to organisations and to projects aimed at advancing peace and reconciliation in Northern Ireland, on a cross-Border basis and between Ireland and Britain. The link below contains a list of all grants awarded to organisations through the Reconciliation Fund since 2005.
831. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he has been appraised of international concern arising from persecution of Christians at various jurisdictions worldwide; if efforts are being made to promote the need for religious tolerance; the steps to be taken to address this issue and generate mutual respect between traditions; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41274/14]
View answerIreland condemns all forms of persecution on the basis of religion or belief, irrespective of where they occur or who are the victims. Ireland is deeply concerned by the persecution of Christians. Ireland attaches great importance to combating all forms of discrimination based on religion or belief and incitement to religious hatred. We firmly believe in tolerance, non-discrimination, freedom of expression, freedom of thought, conscience, religion or belief. Where possible, Ireland raises the issue of the safety of Christians through its official bilateral contacts with the countries in question, stressing the responsibility of the government to protect all citizens and minorities.
Ireland consistently promotes the need for religious tolerance, and presses for effective action to counter the persecution of minorities in all relevant international fora, including the EU and UN, in particular at the UN Human Rights Council. I highlighted the issue when I addressed the UN General Assembly in New York on 29 September. I also raised it during my meeting with UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon.
Ireland is working within the EU to address the persecution of Christians and other religious minorities, notably with the EU Guidelines on Freedom of Religion or Belief adopted during Ireland’s Presidency of the Council of the European Union last year. These Guidelines provide EU officials with an overview of the legal and policy framework within which the right to freedom of religion or belief is protected. They also elaborate an EU strategy on how to engage with third countries on the right to freedom of religion or belief, a strategy which we hope to see bear fruit as we assess the implementation of the Guidelines.
I can assure the Deputy that Ireland will continue to actively support freedom of religion or belief across our foreign policy.
832. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the current position in respect of the abuse of human rights in Colombia; the extent to which this situation continues to improve; if it is expected the EU may influence progress in this regard in the context of the EU trade agreement with Colombia and Peru; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41735/14]
View answerWhile the human rights situation in Colombia remains an area of considerable concern, it is important to note that significant efforts are being made to address abuses and their causes. In recent years, the government has introduced a victims’ and land restitution law and protective measures for vulnerable persons. This improving trend has been noted in the most recent annual report of the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and in the International Labour Organisation (ILO) 2014 report on Latin America.
The current peace process between the government and guerrilla forces offers further potential for an improvement in the overall human rights situation. To quote the report of the OCHCR, which commends the government for its approach to the peace process: ‘Many human rights violations linked to the internal armed conflict could be ended or greatly reduced if the progress made in the peace negotiations leads to well conceived and implemented peace accords. An end to hostilities would also create a unique opportunity to address human rights more broadly’.
Officers from the our Embassy in Mexico continue to monitor closely the human rights situation in Colombia through contacts within government, civil society and third country missions based in Bogotá. Moreover, the EU has in place a range of mechanisms to monitor the human rights situation on the ground.
The Free Trade Agreement with Colombia and Peru includes a sustainable development chapter that provides the EU with an important means to contribute to supporting positive social reforms and to the greater protection of human rights. In addition, the human rights provisions attaching to the FTA are robust by the standards of such Agreements and ultimately permit a unilateral and immediate suspension in the case of grave violations. Ireland strongly promoted the inclusion of these provisions in the agreement.
The human rights dimension has been developed further by the elaboration by the Colombian side, at the request of the European Parliament, of ‘roadmaps’ on human, labour and environmental rights. Through these provisions the EU will assist in encouraging economic and social progress and wider respect for human rights in Colombia.
833. Deputy Finian McGrath asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the position regarding an Irish passport (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41821/14]
View answerInsufficient information has been provided related to this specific case to enable the question be answered in full. However, in general, a person acquires Irish citizenship through one of the following ways:
- by an entitlement to Irish citizenship for certain persons born in the island of Ireland;
- entitlement by descent if one of his/her parents was an Irish citizen at the time of the person's birth;
- by naturalisation at the absolute discretion of the Minister for Justice and Equality.
Accordingly the following general points can be made:
If the parent was an Irish citizen at the time of the birth of the children, then the children are Irish citizens, irrespective of their place of birth (unless one of the special conditions relating to birth outside Ireland applies; these are described below).
If the children were born outside Ireland to an Irish citizen who was himself or herself born in Ireland, then the children are Irish citizens. If the children were born outside Ireland to an Irish citizen who was himself or herself born outside Ireland, and any of the grandparents were born in Ireland, then the children are entitled to become Irish citizens, and can do so by having their births registered in the Foreign Births Register maintained by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
If neither parent nor grandparents were born in Ireland, the children may be entitled to become an Irish citizen by having their birth registered in the Foreign Births Register; this depends on whether the parent through whom they derive Irish citizenship had himself or herself become an Irish citizen by being registered in the Foreign Births Register before the children were born.
Detailed information in relation to entitlement can be obtained from the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service, the body responsible for citizenship matters, reporting to the Minister for Justice and Equality.
834. Deputy Michael P. Kitt asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if his Department will engage constructively at the United Nations in the process of standing for global debt justice for countries of the Global South suffering because of unsustainable and illegitimate debts; if he will support to Ireland's nine development co-operation partner countries and countries of the Caribbean; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41879/14]
View answerIreland has played a strong role in international efforts to alleviate the unsustainable debt burden on some of the poorest countries. We have been to the forefront of the work globally to build a consensus on the issue of debt cancellation for the least developed countries. This has resulted in the development of a strong international framework on debt cancellation for developing countries with debt sustainability problems. We can be proud that Ireland has contributed our full financial share to both the main elements of this debt relief framework, the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative and the Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative (MDRI).
In total, since 1996, Ireland has provided over €116 million for international debt cancellation initiatives. We have done so despite the fact that Ireland, unlike most international aid donors, has not been a bilateral creditor. Our development aid has always been untied and provided on grant terms, not as loans.
We have worked with our partners on the ground, especially in sub-Saharan Africa, to help ensure that the additional money from debt relief has been spent on programmes that benefit the poor, especially through the support of Poverty Reduction Strategy programmes and support for anti-corruption efforts. Through Irish Aid, we are also contributing €100,000 annually to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) for its technical assistance programme to help developing countries manage their debt sustainably.
Ireland is playing a prominent role at the UN on the negotiation of a new framework for international development to succeed the Millennium Development Goals, post-2015. Under the post-2015 process, the Third International Conference on Financing for Development will be held Addis Ababa in July 2015 and will consider debt and debt sustainability as well as other financing options for developing countries. Ireland will play our full role in working for the success of this crucially important meeting.
835. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he will provide reassurances that no development aid funds made available by Ireland to countries in Africa are being used to finance instruction in the technique of symphysiotomy or to fund the performance or promotion of this operation in those countries. [41940/14]
View answerThe Government’s aid programme, Irish Aid, is strongly focused on the fight against poverty and hunger in sub-Saharan Africa. Over 80% of Ireland’s bilateral development cooperation funding is provided to countries in sub-Saharan Africa, where maternal mortality figures remain the highest in the world.
Over 20% of our funding is targeted towards strengthening the national and local health strategies and health systems in our Key Partner Countries. Eight of Ireland’s nine Key Partner Countries are in Africa: Ethiopia, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia. A key aim is to assist the health systems in these countries to reach international standards. This includes supporting improved maternal and reproductive health and replacing outdated and discredited procedures such as symphysiotomy with safer and more effective obstetric practices. Reproductive health remains a priority for the Irish Aid programme, and we will continue to work to ensure that preventable maternal mortality is reduced globally.
836. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he has raised concerns with the Israeli ambassador in relation to the proposed further expansion of settlements by the Israeli authorities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42230/14]
View answer837. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade his plans to raise at the European Union Foreign Affairs Council the totally unacceptable expansion of settlements by the Israeli authorities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42231/14]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 836 and 837 together.
I have consistently highlighted the Government’s concern at the continued expansion of Israeli settlements, which are actively undermining the prospects for a comprehensive peace agreement to end the conflict.
In public statements on 1 September and again on 28 October I explicitly condemned Israeli government announcements of further settlement expansion, and called for these decisions to be reversed. These concerns are regularly conveyed to the Israeli authorities, both through the Ambassador of Israel here and through our own mission in Israel. They are well aware of our views.
Ireland has consistently pressed the European Union to focus on settlements as a key element to be addressed if a Middle East peace agreement is to be achieved. I will continue to highlight this issue in the discussion on the Middle East Peace Process scheduled for the next Foreign Affairs Council on 17 November.
838. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the amount of overseas development assistance funding provided to date to deal with the Ebola outbreak in West Africa; his plans to provide further funding; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42233/14]
View answer839. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the commitments made to fund programmes to deal with the Ebola outbreak following the decision of the EU Council to double funding; the level of funding to be provided by his Department, the overall funding by the EU and its member states; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42234/14]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 838 and 839 together.
I remain deeply concerned about the spread of the Ebola virus in West Africa and the devastating impacts it is having, particularly in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea.
It is clear that the spread of the disease has long-since outpaced the capacity of the three Governments to respond to it and the international community must urgently ensure that the necessary skilled personnel, medical and other facilities are funded, mobilised and deployed to West Africa to deal with the crisis.
Together with our partners in the European Union, Ireland will continue to play its part in the international effort to counter the spread of the Ebola virus. Funding from the European Union and its Member States has now reached more than €900 million. At its meeting on 23-24 October the European Council appointed Commissioner Christos Stylianides as EU Ebola coordinator and called for additional assistance to scale-up the response on the ground, notably with regard to medical care and equipment, as well as reinforced exit-screening. The Council also welcomed Member States’ commitment to increase financial assistance to €1 billion.
Ireland is providing over €16 million annually in the West African region, directly and through NGOs. Some €10 million is being provided for our development programmes in our partner countries in the region, Sierra Leone and Liberia. These programmes are focused on strengthening the health systems in the two countries, which were already of very poor standard but which have now been overwhelmed, and we have reprogrammed non-essential funding outside the health system directly to the Ebola response.
To date, Ireland has provided direct funding of almost €4 million for Ebola treatment facilities in both Sierra Leone and Liberia, as well as for contact-tracing, community sensitisation and child nutrition programmes.
This figure includes 42 tonnes of humanitarian stocks air-lifted to Sierra Leone and distributed to Ebola-affected households and communities. It also includes a contribution of €1 million, which we approved last week, for the UN Ebola Multi-partner Trust Fund established by the UN Secretary General in September to ensure a coherent contribution by the UN system to the overall response to the Ebola outbreak. The contribution to the Trust Fund will be earmarked for Sierra Leone and Liberia.
We are urgently looking at what more we can do, including through our Embassy in Freetown which has been very active locally in helping to coordinate the fight against Ebola. A flexible approach has been adopted with our NGO partners so that long-term development funding provided to them can, as necessary, be redirected to assist with the Ebola effort. We are keeping in close contact with the NGOs in this context.
840. Deputy Michael McCarthy asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the number of quangos set up since 2011 in his Department; the number of members of same; the cost and expense incurred to date including details of the briefs that they cover; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42549/14]
View answerThere are no organisations of the type referred to by the Deputy under the aegis of my Department.
841. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Education and Skills if her attention has been drawn to a delay by Bus Éireann in the issuing of school transport tickets; the reason for the delay; if the printing of the school transport tickets is outsourced to a company outside of the company or the State; and if so, where and when will all outstanding school transport tickets be issued. [41350/14]
View answerBus Éireann is responsible for the day to day operation of my Department's School Transport Scheme. In this regard Bus Éireann has advised that the issuing of school transport tickets has been centralised and outsourced to a company based in Dublin, and consequently it may take a little longer to receive a ticket than before. The closing date for payments is usually four weeks before the schools resume and accordingly this provides sufficient time to print and deliver tickets to families who pay the annual charge or submit their medical card details on time.
In general there is no undue delay in the issuing of tickets to families who pay on time with a small number of exceptions which may arise for example when an operational reorganisation of services to provide sufficient accommodation may become necessary, or efforts are being made operationally to accommodate ineligible children on a concessionary basis without incurring additional State cost. This process is complicated by the large number of families who pay late after the closing date, where every effort is still made by Bus Éireann to accommodate them on services. The closing date for school transport ticket payments was originally the 25th July 2014 and was extended to the 1st August, but even so new ticket payments and/or medical card details are still being submitted by families at a current average rate of some one hundred a day. Consequently it is not possible to say when all outstanding school transport tickets will be issued because they are being issued on an ongoing basis in response to fresh daily demand.
Some 110,000 school transport tickets have been issued by Bus Éireann for the current school year and children will make some 40 million individual journeys using these tickets. Families should liaise with their local Bus Éireann office if they have any queries regarding tickets for school transport services; the list of Bus Éireann offices and contact details are available at www.buseireann.ie
