Gerry Adams
Question:7. Deputy Gerry Adams asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his engagement with the British Chancellor of the Exchequer, Mr Philip Hammond, on 31 August 2017. [39625/17]
View answerWednesday, 27 September 2017
Questions (7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
Micheál Martin
Question:8. Deputy Micheál Martin asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his latest conversations or meetings or both with Prime Minister May and the topics they discussed, in particular regarding the Border between the State and the Northern Ireland. [39657/17]
View answer
Eamon Ryan
Question:9. Deputy Eamon Ryan asked the Taoiseach the talks he has had with the British Prime Minister on Brexit over the course of the summer recess. [39688/17]
View answerMicheál Martin
Question:10. Deputy Micheál Martin asked the Taoiseach if he will clarify his comments on not bringing forward proposals on the Border here in the event of a hard Brexit, in view of the fact that he informed Prime Minister May regarding his intentions on this; and the nature of her response to same. [40404/17]
View answerMicheál Martin
Question:11. Deputy Micheál Martin asked the Taoiseach if he has recently spoken to Prime Minister May regarding the ongoing negotiations in Northern Ireland to enable the Northern Assembly to be reconvened. [40407/17]
View answerMicheál Martin
Question:12. Deputy Micheál Martin asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his meeting with Prime Minister May on 25 September 2017; and the issues that were discussed. [40673/17]
View answerMicheál Martin
Question:13. Deputy Micheál Martin asked the Taoiseach if devolved responsibilities in Northern Ireland were discussed with Prime Minister May; and if there was concern regarding these responsibilities being put on hold in view of the fact that the Northern Irish Executive has not been established yet. [40674/17]
View answerGerry Adams
Question:14. Deputy Gerry Adams asked the Taoiseach if he has had engagement with the British Prime Minister, Mrs. Theresa May, since 26 July 2017; if so, the issues discussed; and if the efforts to restore the political institutions in Northern Ireland was one of these. [40535/17]
View answerOral answers (55 contributions)
I propose to take Questions Nos. 7 to 14, inclusive, together.
I met Prime Minister May in London on Monday last. We discussed the political situation in Northern Ireland and both the Prime Minister and I agreed on the need to have the power-sharing institutions restored as soon as possible. We repeated our strong message to the Northern Ireland parties to redouble their efforts to reach an agreement to re-establish the Executive. We reaffirmed our two Governments' commitment to protecting the peace process and the progress made in Northern Ireland in recent years.
During the meeting we also discussed the ongoing Brexit negotiations and the Prime Minister's speech in Florence last Friday. I indicated that my Government wanted to make sure that the close relationship built up between the two countries in recent years is maintained into the future, although Brexit is clearly an enormous challenge to that.
While the Florence speech contained some welcome elements we need to see more detail and, in particular, we need to see greater clarity on how we are going to avoid a border between North and South. In this context, I welcomed the Prime Minister's clear statement that physical infrastructure would be unacceptable.
Our meeting in Downing Street followed my meeting with the British Chancellor of the Exchequer, Philip Hammond, in Dublin on 31 August, when we also spoke about the serious issues arising from Brexit. During that meeting I underlined to the Chancellor the importance of making sufficient progress on the phase 1 issues currently under discussion. They are citizens' rights, financial matters, and, of course, the unique Irish issues. I also made clear the Government's objective that there should be no new impediments to the all-island economy that has been able to develop over the past two decades and which is a gain of the peace process that benefits communities across the island.
The Prime Minister's speech in Florence contained some welcome elements. I believe greater progress on the phase one issues is needed. I hope that the round of negotiations under way in Brussels can help move things forward and I look forward to meeting with other EU presidents and prime ministers in Tallinn tomorrow.
In respect of the Taoiseach's exhortation to all and sundry that the power-sharing institutions be re-established, it is the absolute intention and resolve of Sinn Féin to see precisely this happen. For it to happen, the issues of contention which had been agreed upon previously have to be addressed. We have set these issues out for the Taoiseach and his colleague, the Minister, Deputy Simon Coveney, in the clearest possible terms. I respectfully suggest that, rather than endlessly restating his desire for this to happen, the Taoiseach might set out for us what precisely he is doing to ensure that commitments are met around Acht na Gaeilge, a bill of rights, and funding for legacy inquests. As the Taoiseach knows, there are families that have waited decades simply for an inquest into the death, shooting or killing of a loved one. Not all of these families are republican or nationalist, lest there be any misunderstanding. Those issues need to be resolved. It is as clear as the nose on anybody's face that this is the case. When they are resolved, we will move forward with the institutions. The Taoiseach and others here like to play the game of saying Sinn Féin does not want the institutions. We want them. I would go so far as to say that the institutions are a necessary part of our journey as Irish republicans, committed to an equal society and a united Ireland.
On the issue of Theresa May and Brexit, the Prime Minister's speech in Florence clarified precisely nothing. What we have from Theresa May and the British system is lots of words and noise but no meaning. We need to move to a position where the British set out not some meaningless formula around "no return to borders of the past", but concrete propositions as to how we will protect the interests of Ireland, North and South. We must make absolutely sure that there is no border. It is not a case of highlighting the technology that might manage or ameliorate a border. We cannot afford a border, economic or otherwise, on our island.
In August, the Taoiseach unveiled his new Brexit policy in Belfast which, in spite of the enormous spin, amounted to saying that he was not going to propose anything until London had proposed something. After nearly a year and a half, he could have come up with something better than that. Without question, the Brexit debacle and mess is 100% the fault of the British Government. However, the lack of specifics in our position is becoming ominous. That is particularly dangerous in the context of Northern Ireland, where the Assembly and Executive are not running. Northern Ireland essentially has no coherent voice in respect of the Brexit negotiations.
I have been very critical of the collapse of the Executive and believe Sinn Féin was instrumental in contriving it. Given the enormity of Brexit and the extraordinary negative consequences emanating from Brexit for this island, it is incredible that the Executive and Assembly are still not up and running. While all parties have to contribute, including the Democratic Unionist Party, I do not buy what has been happening for the past nine months. This periodic, serial creation of crises in the Good Friday institutions and framework is not acceptable.
Deputy Martin's words demonstrate remarkable ignorance.
I have been there. I have been in negotiations with all parties.
I have been there with the Deputy.
Deputy McDonald was not. She was never in negotiations.
I have, and I have seen Deputy Martin at close quarters.
When I was Minister for Foreign Affairs, Deputy McDonald, was nowhere. What tended to happen was that certain people came out for the photo calls. The Deputy was never at negotiations with me or Shaun Woodward. Commitments that were given then were not dealt with or seen through. Every now and again it suits to create a crisis. There is a media acceptance of this which, at times, we all get a bit tired of. The endless crises, the suspension of judgment-----
The Deputy should get on the field and puck the ball.
We have the same sort of choreography going on there all the time, and the same drama and melodrama of meetings, and will the crisis be resolved?
This is really beyond stupid.
At the heart of it, there is a cynicism at play.
There is.
I have to put that on the record of the House. That said, it is particularly serious in the context of Brexit. That is the most serious issue facing jobs and the quality of life of people on this island. It should trump every other issue facing this island right now. Has the Taoiseach put it directly to the British Government that Northern Ireland needs special treatment in the context of Brexit? Has he raised the issue of a special economic zone? We have put forward the idea that Northern Ireland should have a special economic zone post-Brexit. That would respect the constitutional framework as laid out in the Good Friday Agreement.
The British Government has said it will implement the Good Friday Agreement in full. Has the Taoiseach asked it how it sees the agreement's provisions relating to the European Union operating into the future and particularly the fact that the largest cohort of EU citizens outside of the EU border will be in Northern Ireland post-Brexit?
In its recent position paper, Britain effectively tried to use Ireland as a hostage to win free access to the Single Market. Has the Taoiseach put it to the British Government that a failure to recognise the unique position of Northern Ireland is a departure from nearly 30 years of policy which secured and implemented the peace settlement?
It would be helpful if the Taoiseach would outline Ireland's strategy in respect of the continuing fallout from and discussion around Brexit. The British position now seems to be that they will leave, hard or whatever way, but that they will leave and will then seek to renegotiate on a single-country basis those arrangements that they had before. It is a version of having one's cake and eating it.
The sooner there is an Executive in Northern Ireland the better not just for the North, but for the whole island of Ireland. As we speak, Scotland and Wales have a voice in British constitutional and devolved government arrangements. Northern Ireland, which is likely to be the worst affected, has no voice at all. We get long lectures from Sinn Féin about its detailed positions.
They are the positions of nationalist communities and progressives in the North.
The real position is that there is a serious risk of the Northern economy suffering across the political divide. It does not matter which section of the community is in question. The Northern economy will be suffering.
Does the Taoiseach see merit in what was suggested by former MP, Mr. Mark Durkan, namely, using the various mechanisms and structure of the Good Friday Agreement to provide for North-South issues? This has received a very wide welcome across Northern Ireland, and on east-west issues also.
Could the Taoiseach also tell us, in the context of discussions we had earlier, why his strategic communications staff were in Downing Street? This was widely reported in the Irish media and it was tagged onto the Taoiseach's visit. What was happening there? Were they with the Taoiseach or were they an advance team for him?
There were not any staff of the strategic communications unit in Downing Street with me. If Members of this House do not know it already, they should not believe everything they read in the papers. That simply was not the case. Obviously, if there is a role for people to communicate what the Government is doing, it might be appropriate for them to be there. I am not saying it would not be appropriate. I am saying it did not happen. The Deputy should not believe everything she reads in the papers.
The strategic communications unit did have a role in producing a very good video about Ireland's Rugby World Cup bid, which was seen by about half a million people. It is entirely appropriate and right that the Irish people should know this bid is happening and that it is being backed by the Irish Government. It is not just an IRFU bid, but a national effort involving the GAA, the Government and the Administration in Northern Ireland. It was disappointing that the Northern Ireland Administration had to be represented by its chief civil servant, David Sterling, rather than by Arlene Foster and Michelle O'Neill, who should have been there.
Why is it only up to Sinn Féin to represent the people in the North? Is there not a responsibility on the part of the Taoiseach's party to do so?
I mentioned Arlene Foster as well. It is the strong view of Government that the Northern Ireland Executive should be functioning. People in Northern Ireland want and expect devolved government and it is important that Northern Ireland should have a unique voice. As Deputy Burton pointed out, there is a Scottish First Minister and a Welsh First Minister. There is a Scottish Parliament and a Welsh Assembly and they have a role in the constitutional process. There is somebody one can ring if one wants to talk to Scotland or Wales. The fact that Sinn Féin and the DUP have not come together to form a Government is letting down the people of Northern Ireland.
The Taoiseach should run in an election, put it to the people there and see how he gets on.
It is not good enough always to be asking others to make compromises. Politics is about compromise and Sinn Féin will have to make compromises to allow an Executive to be established.
On what, Taoiseach? On which element - legacy funding, an Ghaeilge? I ask the Taoiseach to set out where the compromises should be made.
The Taoiseach without interruption.
This is the constant pattern of the debate we have in this Parliament.
At least it is not scripted.
The only time the Deputy is not scripted is when she is interrupting.
The Taoiseach is so clever he does not need a script. He should set out the ways we should compromise.
Without interruption please, Deputy, or I will have to ask you to leave the House.
Is it any small wonder the people of Northern Ireland-----
Vote for us in massive numbers? No, it is not.
Is it any small wonder that the people of Northern Ireland do not have a First Minister or a deputy First Minister?
It is because we do not like corruption in Government.
Is it any small wonder the people of Northern Ireland do not have an Executive or an Assembly? It is because this is the attitude of Sinn Féin. They are constantly hectoring and making smart aleck remarks. There is a lack of temperance, a lack of respect for other people and an inability to listen or to compromise.
Tell us what we should compromise on. Is it the bill of rights?
I expect the Deputy to adhere to the Standing Orders of the House.
It should be of no wonder whatsoever that the people of Northern Ireland have no government and have no voice. The style of politics, debate and negotiation favoured by Sinn Féin is to interrupt people and shout them down-----
The Taoiseach would be an expert in that.
They shout them down and show total disrespect for anyone who does not share their views.
We will now move on to Priority Question No. 34 in the name of Deputy Ó Cuív. The Minister, Deputy Humphreys, is present.
What are we to compromise on? I will write to the Taoiseach and he can write back in reply. It is not a laughing matter.
I am laughing at the Deputy, not the issue.
I am not laughing at the Taoiseach. I do not find him funny at all.
The Deputy is very cranky today.
I am not cranky at all. I find the Taoiseach facile and dismissive on important issues.
Can the Members please stop? The Deputy is on her feet; she may as well leave.
Are the Taoiseach's questions over?
If the Deputy was listening, she would have ascertained that.
I assume the Taoiseach is leaving as well. Gabh mo leithscéal, Deputy Ó Cuív.
Tá fáilte roimh an Teachta.
What the Deputy is doing is very unusual and I find it wholly unacceptable.
I am not disturbing the House.
Deputy McDonald is disturbing the House. Please leave.
I am leaving.