Written Answers Nos. 506-517
506. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the extent to which the situation in Ukraine remains on the agenda at European Union Council meetings; the extent to which positive indications continue to be identified; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45686/15]
View answerThe situation in Ukraine remains a key concern for the European Union. On Monday, the Foreign Affairs Council considered Ukraine as part of a broader discussion on Eastern Partners and it is expected that Ministers will discuss Ukraine, again, early in the New Year. The European Council meets today and tomorrow in Brussels where Ukraine will feature on the agenda.
As the deadline of 31 December approaches for the implementation of key provisions of the Minsk agreements, it has been widely acknowledged that this deadline will not be fully met. Notable progress has been seen in a number of areas. The security situation in Eastern Ukraine – while remaining tense and volatile – has improved considerably since a ceasefire was agreed on 1 September. This respite in violence has provided an opportunity for progress within the context of the OSCE Trilateral Contact Group and their four working groups and within the framework of Normandy Format discussions (France, Germany, Russia and Ukraine).
The Minsk agreements continue to offer the only basis for a stable and lasting political resolution to this conflict and the European Union will continue to support and facilitate their full implementation as a matter of urgency.
507. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the extent to which the international community continues to monitor and support the democratic structures emerging in Myanmar; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45687/15]
View answerThe recent elections in Myanmar, which attracted significant international attention, mark a historic moment in the country’s democratic transition. Along with my counterparts in the EU and the wider international community, I welcome the broadly peaceful and well-organised manner in which the elections were carried out, while stressing that the legal framework of the electoral process must be improved to ensure that it is fully inclusive and representative.
Nevertheless, it is recognised by the international community that the country is still at an early stage of its democratic transition and that it faces a wide range of challenges in the coming years as it seeks to strengthen its democratic structures. Reflecting this, the UN General Assembly Third Committee unanimously adopted a resolution on the promotion and protection of human rights on 18 November 2015, which among other issues, encourages the international community to continue to support the Government of Myanmar in the implementation of its democratic transitional process.
The EU continues to monitor and support Myanmar’s democratic transition closely, both on the ground, and at political and working group level in Brussels. The Comprehensive Framework for the EU’s policy and support to Myanmar, adopted by the Foreign Affairs Council in July 2013, sets out the context for this support. Noting that human rights and fundamental freedoms are essential elements of democracy, the framework outlines the areas in which the EU has committed to providing support, assistance, and advice, including support to strengthen the electoral system in Myanmar, engagement in constitutional review, ratification and implementation of core human rights conventions, strengthening democratic institutions and rule of law, and interaction with civil society.
Along with the wider international community, Ireland is committed to supporting Myanmar in its transition towards democracy. Ireland actively participated in the EU’s recent Electoral Observation Mission, which included three observers supported by Irish Aid and a representative from the Embassy of Ireland in Hanoi. Since 2013 Ireland has established a modest development programme in Myanmar of €500,000 per annum, overseen by Embassy Hanoi. Support is provided through trusted development partners for both long term development work and emergency/recovery responses. This is particularly important in the light of the recent elections and the need for continued support and engagement in Myanmar’s transition to democracy.
Furthermore, as part of Ireland’s efforts to enhance governance, human rights and gender equality in Myanmar, some €3 million has been provided to partner organisations since 2012; including €2.8 million support to Trócaire for their work supporting communities to defend and protect their rights to land and efforts to increase women’s participation in decision making at a local level. In addition, almost €2 million in humanitarian funding has been provided to Irish Aid NGO partners in Myanmar since 2012 to meet needs arising from conflict, food insecurity and natural disasters.
Upon their appointment, I strongly encourage the new leaders of the country to seize the positive momentum of the elections to make further progress in the democratisation process in Myanmar.
508. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the extent to which humanitarian aid continues to be made available to those for whom it was intended throughout the continent of Africa; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45688/15]
View answerThe world is currently facing an unprecedented level of humanitarian crisis, and appeals for assistance continue to outpace the international community’s capacity to respond. Almost 60 million people are now displaced globally, half of them children, many on the continent of Africa.
The Government’s aid programme, Irish Aid, is strongly focused on the fight against poverty and hunger in sub-Saharan Africa and Ireland’s humanitarian response focuses on the most severe crises, especially protracted and forgotten emergencies. The core objective of our assistance is to save and protect lives, alleviate suffering and maintain human dignity, before, during and in the aftermath of such crises. Ireland's humanitarian response is principled and focused on where needs are greatest.
Ireland is committed to working with a range of partners including non-governmental and UN organisations, and the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. These partners have the experience and capacity to deliver assistance to the most vulnerable communities in times of crisis and stress.
In total, Ireland has provided over €80 million in humanitarian assistance in 2015 and this budget will increase to over €100 million for 2016. We are allocating additional resources across affected countries to support programmes which save lives, improve food security and protect livelihoods.
In addition to responding to acute humanitarian needs in South Sudan since the outbreak of conflict two years ago, Ireland continues to provide humanitarian assistance in a number of major crises across Africa in Sudan, Democratic Republic of the Congo, and across the Sahel and the Horn of Africa, including Somalia and Ethiopia.
Many parts of Africa are currently being affected by the El Niño weather event which is one of the strongest ever measured. More unpredictable weather conditions are already having a detrimental effect on people’s lives and livelihoods across the continent. We will continue to monitor the situation closely and scale up responses in order to build the resilience of people to withstand the effects of such a weather event across Africa.
509. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the extent to which he, directly and through the aegis of the European Union and the United Nations, continues to monitor the development of the aid-for-trade policy pursued by some countries in respect of the various deserving countries throughout Africa. [45689/15]
View answerIreland’s development co-operation programme, which is at the heart of our foreign policy, recognises that international trade can play a major role in the promotion of economic development and the alleviation of poverty. The World Trade Organisation-led Aid for Trade initiative encourages developing country Governments and donors to recognise the role that trade can play in development. In particular, the initiative seeks to mobilise resources to address the trade-related constraints identified by developing and least-developed countries.
My Department actively monitors the development of aid for trade policy. Ireland was represented at the 5th Global Review of Aid for Trade which was held from 30th June to 2nd July this year in Geneva. The review found that the Aid for Trade initiative was delivering and had the continued commitment of the trade and development community. The areas identified for greater focus at the Review were reducing trade costs, especially for the poor; Least Developed Countries; gender; and adapting to implement the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The new EU trade strategy Trade for All published in October includes a commitment to review, with EU Member States, the EU’s Aid for Trade strategy to enhance the capacity of developing countries to make use of the opportunities offered by trade agreements, in line with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Ireland will actively participate in this review of the EU Aid for Trade strategy.
I am pleased that since 2000, Ireland has provided support to the major, mainly Geneva based, international organisations involved in Aid for Trade work. This includes two technical assistance programmes of the WTO; the International Trade Centre; the Advisory Centre for WTO Law; and the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development Port Training Programme. Our funding to these organisations amounted to €1.65m in 2015.
510. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the extent to which the various Irish embassies and consulates abroad continue to promote and encourage new markets for Irish products; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45690/15]
View answerThe advancement of Ireland’s trade, tourism, investment and education promotion objectives is of central importance to our foreign policy and of the work of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and its Embassy network. Irish Embassies and Consulates-General provide a global platform for the promotion of Ireland as a business, investment, tourism and education destination.
While the majority of Irish services and merchandise exports go to Europe and the US and we must of course continue to cultivate these markets, the Government is strongly focused on the further development of trading partnerships with other important emerging markets.
The Embassy network plays a crucial role in proactively addressing market access issues, supporting Irish businesses seeking to grow overseas, holding promotional events for, and in association with, State agencies and actively contributing to the organisation and conduct of Enterprise Ireland-led trade missions and events overseas.
Our Embassy network plays an important role in the implementation of the Government Trade Tourism and Investment Strategy. In the Review of the Strategy published in February 2014, seven additional high potential and exploratory markets were identified as part of a ‘new market approach’ aimed at increasing our engagement with high growth markets in Asia, Latin America and Africa. The markets in question are as follows: Turkey, Indonesia, Nigeria, Mexico, Vietnam, Thailand and Chile.
Ireland now has a presence in all but one of the above markets. Guided by the Review, new Embassies have recently been opened in Bangkok (Thailand), Jakarta (Indonesia), Nairobi (Kenya) and Zagreb (Croatia). Consulates-General have also been opened in Hong Kong (China), Austin (Texas) and in Sao Paulo (Brazil). These new Embassies and Consulates-General will strengthen Ireland’s capacity to take advantage of emerging opportunities in these important markets as well as complementing the existing trade promotion work of our Embassy network.
In November 2015, my Department hosted the fourth Global Irish Economic Forum in Dublin. Many of the participants are members of the Global Irish Network. This Network works closely with the Government and State agencies in promoting Ireland’s economic, cultural and tourism messages in key markets.
In terms of the level of Irish trade with overseas markets, the Central Statistics Office maintains a website, www.cso.ie on which the most recent trade statistics are made available to the public.
511. Deputy Billy Timmins asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the composition of the rapid response corps; when it last met; the number of members it has; if consideration was given to deploying it in the Shannon basin; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45714/15]
View answerUnder Ireland’s Rapid Response Initiative, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade manages a roster of highly skilled and experienced individuals who make themselves available to deploy overseas at short notice to work in severe, large-scale humanitarian and emergency crises around the world. The Rapid Response Corps roster currently comprises 120 individuals with specialised skills in child protection, nutrition, logistics, engineering, humanitarian coordination, and other areas.
Rapid Response Corps members are deployed overseas to work as surge capacity in United Nations’ humanitarian response operations including those of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, the World Food Programme, the United Nations Children’s Fund and the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
As the Rapid Response Corps was established as part of Ireland’s overseas development and humanitarian assistance programme, all Corps members deploy overseas to areas of greatest need in developing countries. In light of the vast humanitarian needs globally at the current time, and the focus of the Government’s overseas development assistance programme, consideration was not given to deploying members to flood affected communities and households in the Shannon basin to assist with relief efforts.
Most Corps members deploy overseas to severe, protracted crises in Africa and crises in the Middle East driven by conflict and violence, where millions of people have been displaced and the scale of humanitarian need is immense and unprecedented. Corps members also deploy overseas in the immediate aftermath of severe sudden onset disasters such as the earthquakes in Haiti and Nepal and Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines. 32 roster members were deployed to date in 2015 to countries including South Sudan, Sudan, Ethiopia, the Central African Republic, Nigeria, Tanzania, Jordan, and Nepal.
513. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade how the priority area for action in One World One Future relating to hunger and nutrition is being advanced by positions Ireland is taking at this week's World Trade Organisation ministerial conference; if Ireland is supporting binding outcomes for least-developed countries which would advance their peoples' food and livelihood security; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45729/15]
View answerThe 10th Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) is taking place from 15th to 18th December in Nairobi. The Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation is the lead Department on WTO matters. My colleague, Mr. Damien English T.D., Minister of State for Skills, Research and Innovation is representing Ireland at the Ministerial Conference. At the WTO, the European Commission leads negotiations on behalf of the European Union, including all 28 Member States. Ireland is actively participating in the formulation of EU positions at the negotiations.
Ireland’s development co-operation programme, which is at the heart of our foreign policy, recognises that international trade can play a major role in the promotion of economic development and the alleviation of poverty, including the fight against hunger and undernutrition. My Department liaises closely with the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation to ensure that the needs of Least Developed Countries (LDCs) are taken into account in the articulation of Ireland’s position on the WTO at EU level. Ireland supports agreement on a development package at the Ministerial Conference, especially on following up the decisions taken at the ninth Ministerial Conference on duty-free, quota-free access; on an LDC Services Waiver; on Rules of Origin; and on Cotton and Food Security.
I understand that Minister of State English, while attending the EU Foreign Affairs Council (Trade) in Nairobi, has urged the EU Commission to strive for a balanced negotiated outcome from this week’s Ministerial Conference which would deliver a tangible dividend for LDCs. I also understand that with the assistance of our Embassy in Nairobi, he is having discussions with a number of local non-governmental development organisations.
Ireland has also provided €50,000 this year to support LDC participation at the Ministerial Conference so that the Least Developed Countries can be present and make their voices heard directly during the negotiations.
514. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade how he plans to ensure that the private sector adheres to the recently published interpretive notice by the European Union on the correct labelling of imported goods from illegal Israeli settlements located in the occupied Palestinian territories; when it is expected to see, in physical terms, the introduction of labelling in the Irish market; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45730/15]
View answer515. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the measures he will take following the interpretive notice by the European Union on the correct labelling of imported goods from illegal Israeli settlements located in the occupied Palestinian territories; and if he will task inspection and enforcement bodies to pay attention to correct implementation of the interpretative notice, act in cases of mislabelling and ensure that penalties for mislabelling are effective, proportionate and dissuasive, as stipulated in Article 3 of the interpretative notice. [45731/15]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 514 and 515 together.
I discussed the question of implementation of the Commission’s recent interpretive notice on place of origin labelling, or indication of origin, during my meeting with the Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade on 25 November.
The Interpretative Notice on Indications of Origin, published by the European Commission on 12 November, provides guidance to importers and retailers on how EU rules on place of origin labelling should be applied in the specific case of the occupied Palestinian territory.
It does not alter or extend existing EU rules that were already in force. As I indicated to the JCFAT, therefore, what arises is dissemination of the guidance rather than implementation. I am placing the Commission Notice on my Department’s website, and my Department has also written to other relevant Government Departments asking them to bring the Notice to the attention of relevant bodies. In addition, of course, the extensive media coverage of the Commission Notice will have brought it to the attention of many.
As there is no change in the rules, no new enforcement machinery or procedure arises. Accuracy of product labelling will continue to be a consumer protection issue, monitored and enforced as heretofore. This is a matter for all relevant Government Departments.
516. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the amount his Department has received in fees from freedom of information requests in 2014 and in 2015 to date; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45760/15]
View answerThe amount my Department has received in fees from Freedom of Information (FOI) requests in 2014 and 2015 to date is set out in the following table.
Only certain FOI requests will accrue search and retrieval fees. A minimum fee threshold of €101, or 5 hours of an officer’s time, for FOI request exists. Below this threshold, no search, retrieval or copying fees are charged. Total search and retrieval fees paid to my Department for the period in question amount to €1,015. However, this figure in no way reflects the time and resources devoted by officers of my Department responding to FOI requests.
|
- |
2014 |
2015 |
|
Number of request received |
117 |
120 |
|
Search and retrieval fees |
€775 |
€240 |
517. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the number of political staff working in his Department, including the role and salary of each staff member. [45787/15]
View answerThe details of my Ministerial Appointees and those of the Ministers of State in the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade are set out in the following tables.
Office of the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Charlie Flanagan, TD
|
Role/Title |
Number |
Annual Salary |
|
Special Adviser Personal Assistant Personal Secretary Civilian Driver |
2 1 1 2 |
€82,587 €25,074 €49,794 €32,964 |
Office of the Minister of State with special responsibility for European Affairs and Data Protection, Dara Murphy, TD
|
Role/Title |
Number |
Annual Salary |
|
Special Adviser Personal Assistant Personal Secretary Civilian Driver |
1 1 1 2 |
€64,257 €49,790 €43,458 €34,699 |
Office of the Minister of State for Development, Trade Promotion and North-South Co-operation, Seán Sherlock, TD
|
Role/Title |
Number |
Annual Salary |
|
Personal Assistant Personal Secretary Civilian Driver |
1 1 2 |
€45,485 €46,934 €32,964 |
Office of Minister of State with special responsibility for the Diaspora, Jimmy Deenihan, TD
|
Role/Title |
Number |
Annual Salary |
|
Personal Assistant Personal Secretary Civilian Driver |
1 1 2 |
€52,925 €46,934 €32,964 |
