Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 12 April 2017
25. Deputy Darragh O'Brien asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if the rights of 1.8 million persons in Northern Ireland to EU citizenship under the Good Friday Agreement will be protected in full after Brexit; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18552/17]
View answerIn light of the decision of the British people and British Government to lodge the Article 50 letter, will the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade confirm that the right of the 1.8 million people in Northern Ireland to EU citizenship under the Good Friday Agreement will be protected in full by the Irish Government in the post-Brexit Europe? Will he expand on the steps our Government is taking to ensure the fundamental rights of Irish citizens are protected in Northern Ireland and, by extension, their right to EU citizenship?
As a co-guarantor of the Good Friday Agreement, the Government is determined that all aspects of the Agreement will be fully respected through the process of the United Kingdom's withdrawal from the European Union and thereafter. Our priority is to ensure that the Good Friday Agreement and the overall balance of the settlement is not in any way disturbed by the United Kingdom's exit from the European Union. All provisions of the Agreement must be respected, including the fundamental provisions on citizenship and identity.
Under Irish citizenship law, the vast majority of people born on the island of Ireland, including those born in Northern Ireland, are entitled to Irish citizenship. The Good Friday Agreement further provides that the people of Northern Ireland have the right to identify themselves and be accepted as Irish or British, or both, and that the right to hold both British and Irish citizenship would not in any way be affected by any future change in the constitutional status of Northern Ireland. It is important to state this provision is and will remain unaffected by the UK decision to leave the European Union. Persons who are citizens of Ireland, and therefore also EU citizens, will retain their right to EU citizenship after Brexit and the entitlements that flow from this under EU law.
In the forthcoming EU-UK negotiations, the Government will work to ensure that the continuing EU citizenship of Irish citizens in Northern Ireland can be sustained in a way that is consistent with their unique situation. In this regard, we should be clear that the UK Government also has a major role and responsibility in upholding the letter and spirit of the Good Friday Agreement, regardless of the United Kingdom's status within the European Union. The Government has made this point to the UK Government on a number of occasions and will continue to do so.
As part of my engagement with the Secretary of State and with each of the parties in the discussions in recent weeks, I have strongly emphasised the critical importance of forming a new Executive so that Northern Ireland's interests can be effectively represented as part of the process of the EU-UK negotiations that are about to commence. I very much hope that the necessary agreement between the parties will be reached on the formation of the Executive as soon as possible so that it can directly represent the interests of the people of Northern Ireland in these negotiations, which are of major significance.
I thank the Minister for the response. We would or should all agree that anyone born in Dungannon, Belfast or Newry is as Irish as anyone born in Swords, Malahide or Skerries and that their rights need to be protected. On foot of that, their right to EU citizenship needs to be protected. I welcome the Minister's response but I have a concern over the manner in which the British Government has approached this subject. Warm words and reassurances from the London Government really are not enough and certainly do not give solace to most people in the North considering the manner in which they have been treated so far. Will the Minister enlighten me further, following his discussions with the British Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Mr. James Brokenshire, on whether the British have confirmed absolutely that the rights of Irish citizens will be extended to include the right to EU citizenship after Brexit and that anyone born in Northern Ireland after whatever agreement comes into place between Britain and the European Union will have a right to EU citizenship by extension? Under the Good Friday Agreement, they have a right to Irish citizenship.
I want to make it quite clear that all those persons who are citizens of Ireland are EU citizens and that, after Brexit, assuming that the United Kingdom leaves the European Union in two years or whatever extended period thereafter that is deemed appropriate, all of these citizens will fully retain their right to EU citizenship and all the entitlements that flow from it in accordance with EU law. In the case of Northern Ireland, this is further underpinned by the right to identify and be accepted as Irish or British, or both. This is one of the major pillars or priorities for the UK withdrawal. When we list our priorities and speak about the unique circumstances on the island of Ireland, we noted that a pillar of that uniqueness is the fact that all citizens living in Northern Ireland are entitled to Irish citizenship and, therefore, EU citizenship.
I thank the Minister. We want respect for the Good Friday Agreement to form part of the Brexit agreement. The British Government will have to buy into this, as will the European Union. I seek that after 2020, for argument's sake, people born in Belfast or elsewhere in the North who rightly claim the right to Irish citizenship will be conferred automatically with EU rights and EU citizenship. Is it the case that that specific arrangement will require the agreement of the European Union and Britain as part of the Brexit discussions and whatever agreement emerges from the negotiations over the next two years? Will the Minister now confirm completely that this will be the case and that the citizenship rights underwritten by the Good Friday Agreement will be protected by the co-guarantor of the Agreement, the Irish Government?
It is too early to discuss in detail, or in terms of small print, the potential impact of the withdrawal process but I assure the House and the Deputy once again that, since the outcome of the referendum in the United Kingdom, we have been extremely clear that all the provisions of the Good Friday Agreement must be fully recognised and respected following the United Kingdom's departure from the European Union. We have been engaging extensively with all EU member states and institutions on this priority. There is a very good understanding among our EU partners of the importance of the Good Friday Agreement and, indeed, the peace process to the people of the island of Ireland. This is reflected in the inclusion of a specific reference to Ireland's priorities in the European Council draft negotiating guidelines and the Brexit resolution adopted by the European Parliament recently. The extensive and diplomatic engagement of recent months has been effective in this regard. This, of course, will continue. I would be very happy to keep the Deputy fully briefed and the House fully informed. The circumstances on the island of Ireland are most definitely unique and will need to be factored into the final negotiation detail.
