Christopher O'Sullivan
Ceist:1. Deputy Christopher O'Sullivan asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on environment and climate change will meet next. [7944/24]
Ceisteanna - Questions
Cabinet Committees
Darren O'Rourke
Ceist:2. Deputy Darren O'Rourke asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on environment and climate change will next meet. [8950/24]
Mary Lou McDonald
Ceist:3. Deputy Mary Lou McDonald asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on environment and climate change will meet next. [9141/24]
Mick Barry
Ceist:4. Deputy Mick Barry asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on environment and climate change will meet next. [12452/24]
Ruairí Ó Murchú
Ceist:5. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on environment and climate change will meet next. [13013/24]
Richard Boyd Barrett
Ceist:6. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on environment and climate change will meet next. [10625/24]
Paul Murphy
Ceist:7. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on environment and climate change will meet next. [10628/24]
Christopher O'Sullivan
Ceist:8. Deputy Christopher O'Sullivan asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on environment and climate change will meet next. [14091/24]
Bríd Smith
Ceist:9. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on environment and climate change will meet next. [15185/24]
Ruairí Ó Murchú
Ceist:10. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on environment and climate change will meet next. [16355/24]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 1 to 10, inclusive, together.
The Cabinet committee on the environment and climate action was formally reconstituted last week. It oversees implementation of the ambitious programme for Government commitments in regard to the environment and climate change. The committee has met on 21 occasions since July 2020, most recently on 22 February. I intend to schedule its next meeting very shortly.
The committee considers the wide range of issues that require action in Ireland's transition to a low-carbon, climate resilient and sustainable future in which we take full advantage of the renewable energy potential we possess and move away from our dependence on expensive, imported fossil fuels. The Government's objective is for Ireland to play its full part in EU and global efforts to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions that are causing climate change and to ensure we protect ourselves from the adverse impacts we are already experiencing and that we know will become more acute.
Climate action is a complex challenge. It demands major policy, regulatory, fiscal and sectoral initiatives across all of the economy, with implications for all communities and for every citizen. The realities of climate change and the commitments we have made at UN, EU and national levels demand a transformation in how we do things. The Government will continue to be ambitious in this area and will work with sectors, communities and households to ensure this transformation is done in a way that is fair and collaborative. We will continue to provide the incentives, protections and supports that are required to help people adjust.
Our ambition is that, working together, we can help to create a better Ireland that is well positioned to thrive, economically, socially and environmentally, in the rapidly changing circumstances climate change is bringing. Much work has been done since 2020. We are now starting to see those efforts bear fruit through reductions in the level of emissions. However, we still have a great distance to travel in the years ahead. The Cabinet committee will continue to oversee those efforts, including the implementation of the climate action plan and other environmental and energy commitments in our programme for Government.
As there are many Deputies looking to contribute, I ask for their co-operation. Each speaker will have one and a half minutes.
I congratulate the Taoiseach on his election. I wish him the best of luck in the months ahead.
I raise the issue of emissions. The Taoiseach said in his response that we have, fortunately, seen a reduction in overall emissions. However, one area in which emissions are on the increase is transport. Electric vehicles, EVs, will play a key role in reducing emissions in transport, especially in more rural areas. EVs have their detractors. It has become a favourite pastime of some people to bash them or spread misinformation about them. However, they still have a key role to play. Comparing the first three months of this year with the first three months of 2023, there has been a drop in sales of EVs of 10%. That might be down to a lot of factors but one it definitely can be attributed to is that the grant has been reduced from €6,000 to €3,500 per EV. I ask that the grant be restored in full to once again incentivise the purchase of EVs. They play a key role in reducing emissions in the transport sector.
There is a target to double the amount of energy generated from onshore wind between now and 2030 but delivery has fallen off a cliff edge under the Government's watch. The planning system is not fit for purpose. Wind energy guidelines are a case in point. The existing guidelines were published in 2006, which is a lifetime ago in terms of technology and everything else. In the meantime, as communities grow increasingly frustrated, we are told a landmark High Court ruling on wind farm noise, which has the potential to delay projects further, has been referred to the Attorney General. This situation is a mess of the Government's making. There are balances to be struck between the rights of communities and the need to develop renewable energy. Will the Taoiseach provide an update on the Government's response to the High Court ruling? When will updated wind energy guidelines be published?
I am on record as saying that I would have much preferred for a general election to have taken place when the previous Taoiseach resigned. However, I wish the new Taoiseach luck in his role. There is no shortage of issues in front of him at this time.
I raise the ever-present issue for many elected representatives of problems in our dealings with Uisce Éireann. Lately, I have been dealing with issues locally in the likes of Tom Bellew Avenue in Dundalk. I will not to go into the details of the problem with a valve, which we are told will be replaced at the end of June. The valve can sense when demand fluctuates and this impacts on water pressure when people use their showers and all the rest of it. I will be getting answers at some stage regarding other estates where residents have the same issue. We are told there is no problem. I could also talk about Bay Estate in Dundalk. I have raised multiple issues. After the flooding, we asked about the drainage area plan and I submitted multiple questions. I am asking for the Taoiseach's aid in this matter because, unfortunately, there has been a refusal to have a meeting. Uisce Éireann keeps telling me to use its email address for elected representatives.
That is not good enough. I have had reports back from the company and have questions. I would be forever following up with my secondary questions, so I need to have a meeting with the company. I have asked the chief executive for one in the past while. I will give one of the answers I have got on my own estate, Bay Estate. It claims the estate is in a very poor state of repair, with frequent blockages, and prone to groundwater leaking into the network. It adds that it is proposed to undertake surveys first and then follow up with rehabilitation works under the infiltration reduction programme. However, I have major questions on capacity with respect to dealing with floodwater and wastewater, and I really need a meeting.
I was not aware until a bus driver who works for Dublin Bus contacted me that a major transport conference is taking place in Dublin this week. It is the Transport Research Arena conference, which I believe the Minister for Transport, Deputy Ryan, and the Minister of State, Deputy Chambers, are at to discuss sustainable transport. The driver asked me why there are no bus drivers at the conference. The same driver keeps me informed about issues affecting bus workers. He outlined what is required if the authorities want to know how to make public transport actually work and indeed recruit and retain bus drivers, which is critical to having a system that is more reliable and with more frequent services. A huge part of the problem leading to a lack of reliability in public transport in places like Dublin is that the company cannot recruit and retain enough bus workers because the conditions are crap. If someone is working in the privatised part of the system, it is worse. Therefore, there is very little incentive to work for the companies that run the routes that are privatised. The driver I spoke to made a very good point. He asked where the representation for bus workers is at the discussions on how to modernise and make sustainable and functional the public transport we need if we want to get people out of cars and into public transport. The same thing could be said about representatives of taxi drivers.
There is a growing movement around the world, including on this island, to defend the rights of nature. Increasingly, people understand that without the protection of the rights of nature, there cannot be a human right to a healthy environment. Human rights and the rights of nature go hand in hand. On Thursday, campaigners for the rights of nature will gather at 11 a.m. outside the Dáil ahead of the debate we will have in the afternoon on the Oireachtas environment committee's report on the work of the Citizens' Assembly on Biodiversity Loss. Our committee, in line with the citizens' assembly, recommended that a referendum be held on inserting the rights of nature and the right to a healthy environment into the Constitution and that an expert group be established during the lifetime of the Government to begin preparing the referendum questions. Does the Taoiseach support the holding of such a referendum? Have there been any moves to establish such an expert group? If not, will he ensure there is movement on it?
The Taoiseach has six minutes.
I will do my very best. I thank the Leas-Cheann Comhairle. I am learning that these questions have covered a wider area than that covered by the tabled questions, which concern when we will hold the next meeting of the Cabinet committee. It will be scheduled shortly.
I thank Deputy O'Sullivan for his kind wishes. I look forward to working with him. I thank him also for highlighting the importance electric vehicles. His view is one that I share. I believe it is also one that the Tánaiste shares. We all signed up to a programme for Government that was anti-carbon, not anti-car, and therefore have to consider how we can use new technologies to enable people who require cars to use them more sustainably. The financial barrier to ownership of an EV is an issue. It is probably not the only one but it is one that I know people are factoring in. Issues regarding the level of a grant will be a matter for the budgetary process, as the Deputy will have expected me to say, but he is getting his speak in early on the matter. I will certainly reflect the Deputy's views to the Minister, Deputy Ryan, and also seek his views. The Government's scale of ambition for EVs remains the same and therefore we need to consider every lever we can pull to continue to drive on – pardon the pun – the progress we need to make on electric vehicles. There has been good progress but much more needs to be done.
I thank Deputy O'Rourke for raising his question. I will get him an answer directly on where we are and the timeline for the wind guidelines; however, offshore renewable energy remains a very major part of-----
Onshore.
Onshore; my apologies. I will get the Deputy an update on the wind guidelines. I am aware that the Attorney General's advice was being sought. I will ask when we should expect the outcome in that regard and revert to the Deputy directly.
I learned a long time ago that it is easier to offer Deputy Ó Murchú a meeting than not do so, so I advise Uisce Éireann to follow the same approach. It is important that State agencies be accessible to elected representatives. Of course, the format in which such meetings can take place can vary. People can use Zoom and everything else these days. The Deputy clearly has a number of important issues of concern regarding Uisce Éireann for his community and constituency. I hope Uisce Éireann can facilitate his request. I will certainly take it up on his behalf with the line Minister.
Deputy Boyd Barrett referred to the conference taking place in Dublin. I am not across it but I take the Deputy's point. Listening to the voices of workers is a very good thing to do. I am obviously not the organiser or issuer of the invites but I recently had a conversation at Dublin Bus on apprenticeships, how to attract more people into the industry, the issue of preparing for the very significant transformation the bus fleet is going to undergo, the skills that will be required to maintain it and the job opportunities that exist, but also the challenges presented by having to learn new skills. I will relay the Deputy's views to the Minister for Transport and the Minister of State. It is important in general, when approaching the issue of climate action, to adopt the approach of trying to bring people with us, listen to them, talk to them and engage with them. Certainly, workers are a very important part of that.
Deputy Paul Murphy referred to the rights of nature. I am a supporter of the nature restoration law. I will continue to articulate that view in Europe. I will be at the European Council this week and I will be making the point on the new European strategic agenda, which is basically the five-year roadmap for the vision and values of Europe. The climate needs to be stressed much more strongly in the draft document than it currently is. I am aware that there are some views on that.
I understand the Citizens' Assembly on Biodiversity Loss published its report in March 2023 and agreed 159 recommendations, 73 of which were high level and 86 of which were sector specific. That gives us a sense of the depth and breadth. The recommendations of the assembly were deliberated upon by an Oireachtas joint committee. I believe it had a series of engagements with stakeholders, including the Children and Young People's Assembly on Biodiversity Loss. The latter published its report in December and it contained 86 recommendations. My note tells me that 93% of the recommendations of the citizens' assembly and 95% of the calls to action of the children and young people's assembly have been implemented or are in progress. The phrase "in progress" is one we always need to watch in politics.
On the specific recommendation on a referendum, Ireland's 4th National Biodiversity Action Plan 2023–2030, published in January, contains an action whereby the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage will explore ways in which the rights of nature could be formally recognised, including, potentially, in our Constitution. I understand it is due to conclude its deliberations this year, and these will inform Government thinking.
Cabinet Committees
Mick Barry
Ceist:11. Deputy Mick Barry asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on the economy and investment will next meet. [8206/24]
Ruairí Ó Murchú
Ceist:12. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on the economy and investment will next meet. [13014/24]
Alan Dillon
Ceist:13. Deputy Alan Dillon asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on the economy and investment will next meet. [13016/24]
Mary Lou McDonald
Ceist:14. Deputy Mary Lou McDonald asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on the economy and investment will next meet. [13984/24]
Christopher O'Sullivan
Ceist:15. Deputy Christopher O'Sullivan asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on the economy and investment will next meet. [14092/24]
Brendan Smith
Ceist:16. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on the economy and investment will next meet. [14157/24]
Ruairí Ó Murchú
Ceist:17. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on the economy and investment will next meet. [15165/24]
Bríd Smith
Ceist:18. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on the economy and investment will next meet. [15186/24]
Richard Boyd Barrett
Ceist:19. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on the economy and investment will next meet. [15144/24]
Paul Murphy
Ceist:20. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on the economy and investment will next meet. [15147/24]
Rose Conway-Walsh
Ceist:21. Deputy Rose Conway-Walsh asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on the economy and investment will next meet. [16761/24]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 11 to 21, inclusive, together.
The Cabinet committee on the economy and investment was re-established by the Government on 10 April and its next meeting will be scheduled for the coming weeks. The committee last met on 15 February of this year. It comprises the Taoiseach; the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and for Defence and the Ministers for the Environment, Climate and Communications, Transport, Finance, Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform, Enterprise, Trade and Employment and Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and the Media. Other Ministers and Ministers of State are invited to participate as required or where the agenda is relevant to their departmental responsibilities.
The committee oversees the implementation of programme for Government commitments aimed at sustainable economic recovery, investment and job creation, including Harnessing Digital, which is Ireland's national digital strategy.
Despite many external challenges, I am pleased we continue to live in a country that is seeing a very strong economic performance, with more people at work than ever before, female participation in the workforce close to an all-time high and very low levels of unemployment. Thankfully, inflation continues to fall, while households and businesses have been supported, quite rightly, through a range of cost-of-living measures.
Our economic model continues to be founded on a well-established and successful pro-enterprise policy framework, providing a stable and sustainable regulatory and tax environment, sound management of the public finances, and significant investment in the infrastructure and skills required to ensure our future competitiveness.
As with all policy areas, economic issues are regularly discussed at full Government meetings, not just at Cabinet committee meetings. Of course, all formal decisions on our economy and, indeed, all formal decisions of the Government are made at full Cabinet meetings.
We are told that we are living in the bright, shiny Ireland of the 2020s. Turn on many a tap in Cork city today and you might think that you had been transported back to the 1920s. Why? It is because of what is coming out of those taps. It is brown water, orange water, dirty and discoloured with sediment from the inside of water pipes that are more than 100 years old in some cases. I would reckon myself that a majority of people in Cork city now do not trust their water supply. This problem is not new. It has been going on for two years. Up until yesterday, the Tánaiste had made no criticism of Uisce Éireann. It was like he was auditioning for a role as the quiet man. Yesterday, even he felt compelled to speak out. Here is the thing, Taoiseach. Clean, safe water is a human right and the Government cannot just pass the buck to Uisce Éireann. When will the Government do something real about this?
I would also offer to Deputy Barry that manganese seems to be an issue with water discolouration. Louth County Council and Irish Water have done much work on pilot schemes. Some of my follow-up questions for Uisce Éireann relate specifically to that.
House prices and rents are at record highs. There is a rising market. Analysts are now saying that the rate of house price inflation is set to accelerate even further. This is forcing an entire generation of young people to emigrate. Meanwhile, Government has missed all of its affordable housing targets for the fourth year in a row. Moreover, many of these homes are not affordable. I will talk about Cois Farraige, Blackrock, just outside Dundalk, which is Louth County Council's first scheme in years. A price of €305,000 is certainly not affordable for many people. Only five out of ten offerings were taken up. There were at least 26 applications but most of them did not reach criteria. Louth County Council itself stated there is an issue with the criteria. Can we look at the criteria, the costs and the targets relating to affordable housing? It is not working at this point in time.
When we talk about the economy, we have to talk about the value of big sporting occasions and events to the Irish economy, especially in the regional and peripheral areas. It was sad to learn over the past couple of days that Ireland's bid to host the World Rally Championship is in jeopardy. Is there anything the Taoiseach can do in his high office to intervene and try to save this? I understand the hands of the Minister of State, Deputy Byrne, are tied in that he has been told he has to get advice about the economic value but I can tell the Taoiseach this from my own perspective. I am from Clonakilty, where we host the West Cork Rally. It is a much smaller rally but the economic value and buzz that the event brings to my region is incredible. It is not just the crowds, the people or atmosphere but every hotel, restaurant and café is full from Cork to Bantry. The economic spend is phenomenal. It would be a great shame if we missed out on this opportunity. There is a vibrant rally community here in Ireland. Irish rally is on the crest of a wave with William Creighton winning the Junior World Rally Championship. We need to build on that momentum and try to do our best to ensure that this event goes ahead.
The National Youth Council of Ireland, NYCI ,report suggests that half of young people are very unhappy with their housing situation and more than half feel their mental health is seriously being affected by this issue. They have good reason to feel that way. I will give two examples. This week, I met a family who are being evicted. They are a working family who got a notice to quit on grounds of sale. They are in receipt of the HAP now but they are being evicted. If they are made homeless and put into emergency accommodation, they will not be entitled to HAP because they are over the threshold. If you are on HAP, your income can go up because you are working and your rent increases a bit. It is the same in social housing. If you are made homeless because you are over the threshold, when you need the help most, you are told you cannot have any of it and are not entitled to social housing either, so you are trapped in social housing. It is crazy.
I know another working mother who, for similar reasons, has been in emergency accommodation for four years with her son, in one-bedroom accommodation. Those sorts of anomalies have to be addressed because working people who have done nothing wrong are now getting trapped because they are a bit over certain thresholds in a hopeless situation. They are homeless and have no chance. Incidentally, the only accommodation available to them is €3,000 a month. Their combined income after tax is €48,000, so to pay the rent that is being charged in the area without HAP support, they would be paying 75% of their income on the rents that are available.
The Taoiseach told his Ard-Fheis that he would move mountains to get the children out of the box room and into a home of their own. We know what the consequences for the children are of being in the box room. The NYCI report talks about over half of young people having low mental well-being, precisely because they are stuck in the box room with no prospect of having a home or space to themselves. We know why we have got to this point. In essence, it is because we have had housing policy driven by a perverse version of trickle-down economics. It is the idea of giving money and incentives to developers and big landlords and hoping that will get the market moving and get housing going. It has not worked up until this point and the housing crisis has got worse and worse.
The indications of Deputy Harris's reign as Taoiseach marking any sort of turning of the page on that are not good. One of the first decisions it seems the Taoiseach has made, and he might confirm it, has been to extend the waiver of development levies. He might say how much that is going to cost the State. Originally one year, so I presume also another year, was going to cost in excess of €300 million. That is €300 million which could be public money, which could be sitting in local authorities and used to build housing. Instead, it is being left in the pockets of big developers. This is not the way to address the housing crisis. This is the way that has been tried and failed over and over again. Instead of giving public money to private developers, we need to actually build and retrofit homes on a significant scale.
One of the biggest economic and social scandals this country has seen is the defective blocks scandal. Last night, hundreds of homeowners in Mayo gathered at the Great National Hotel in Ballina to tell us how the defective blocks scheme is not working for them. The anguish of trying to access this scheme that is clearly not fit for purpose was palpable. The buck now stops with the Taoiseach. They are looking to the Taoiseach, as Head of Government, to end the nightmare because the Minister and his Department officials are just not listening. He is certainly not hearing what I and my Sinn Féin colleagues have been telling him for months now, or indeed for years in the case of some of us.
Their question to the Taoiseach is as follows. Since 2013, homeowners in Mayo have been campaigning to deliver a fit-for-purpose scheme that would deliver 100% financial redress and 100% support to enable homeowners to rebuild their homes. Does the Taoiseach commit to putting forward the necessary changes to deliver a resolution to the priority issues in the document that I have now given to him? Does the Taoiseach see the issue that his housing Minister is failing to see? Otherwise, as Gina, one of the homeowners, rightly asked last night, what are we meant to do?
I thank the Deputies for the wide range of issues. First, I assure Deputy Barry that the Tánaiste is anything but a quiet man. I have no doubt but that he will give the issue of the water supply and what the Deputy states is a lack of public trust in the water supply his absolute attention. I certainly will follow the matter up with both Uisce Éireann and the Minister for housing. I am happy to come back to Deputy Barry on that issue.
In response to Deputy Ó Murchú, I am clear that there is much more we need to do when it comes to housing but in saying that, I am also very clear there are other important things to say too. We are now building social housing at a rate and pace that we have not seen in this country since the 1970s. In my lifetime, we have never been building social housing at the scale we now are. We have more to do. We need to revise our targets. I have certainly outlined my own view on the level of ambition I think we need to get to between 2025 and 2030. We need to deliver between now and the end of the decade.
We have a way to go on affordable housing but we can now point to positive and significant increases year on year. I remember when my party came to government for the first time in this cycle in 2011, there were fewer than 7,000 homes built in Ireland that year. Last year, more than 30,000 homes were built and this year, I believe we are on track to break our targets again in terms of exceeding delivery. We will continue, no doubt, to debate housing, quite rightly as we should, and how we best deliver it for our people. When we take the politics out of it I know that is what everybody in the House does want to do.
Deputy Christopher O'Sullivan spoke about the World Rally Championship. I have a note on this but it is in my office and I do not have it with me. I am very well aware of the work the Minister of State, Deputy Byrne, and the Minister, Deputy Catherine Martin, have been doing on this issue. It appears that it may not be a possibility for the next world rally but I am very clear that this is something Ireland is extremely interested in making happen. It is very important there is intensive engagement, as I know there will be and as the Minister of State, Deputy Byrne, and the Minister, Deputy Martin, wish there to be. I am taken by the point Deputy O'Sullivan made about the benefits of such sporting events to regional and rural Ireland and the spin-off benefits that he clearly articulated in terms of small businesses such as cafes and the hospitality sector. I will get a written update on it for the Deputy shortly.
I thank Deputy Boyd Barrett for highlighting the National Youth Council of Ireland's report, which outlines the level of frustration, angst, disappointment and concern young people feel about their housing prospects. On one level, the Government cannot be surprised by it because it is the biggest societal issue faced by young people. What I would say to those young people is they are now back living in a country where, year on year, the number of homes being built is massively increasing, as is the composition and diversity of those homes in terms of social, affordable and private to-purchase homes. There are a number of schemes in place and we have different views on them and that is okay. We have put in place a number of schemes to try to help people get some of their own money back towards a deposit. We certainly intend to keep these schemes in place. I sincerely thank Deputy Boyd Barrett for raising some of the anomalies with regard to the housing assistance payment. He put it quite well. I will take a look at it and speak to the Ministers for housing and social protection on this situation.
To respond to Deputy Paul Murphy, we have not yet taken a formal decision on the waiver. I expect us to take a decision on it very shortly. It has not yet come to government. Deputy Murphy and I have differing views on it and I respect that, but it is my position that I would like to see it continue. I see it as a measure that reduces the cost of building and, therefore, helps to stimulate supply. I hope that the commencement figures which are out later this week, on Thursday I believe, will begin to show the real impact it is having. I do not think it is a case of either-or. We need to provide a whole variety of housing. There are people in my constituency who require and should have social housing. There are people who want an affordable starter home. Many of those kids living in the box rooms have mums and dads who want them to be able to buy a house. I do not think, respectfully, and we will have these debates, that we should ask whether it is social and public or private. It needs to be both.
Deputy Conway-Walsh has just handed the Mayo pyrite families document to me. I will look at it with the Minister for housing and I will revert to her directly.
Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements
Cormac Devlin
Ceist:22. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Taoiseach to report on his attendance at the 60th annual Munich Security Conference. [8364/24]
Mary Lou McDonald
Ceist:23. Deputy Mary Lou McDonald asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his attendance at the recent Munich Security Conference. [8774/24]
Seán Haughey
Ceist:24. Deputy Seán Haughey asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his attendance at the 60th annual Munich Security Conference. [9016/24]
Mick Barry
Ceist:25. Deputy Mick Barry asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his attendance at the recent Munich Security Conference. [12451/24]
Bríd Smith
Ceist:26. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his attendance at the recent Munich Security Conference. [15187/24]
Ruairí Ó Murchú
Ceist:27. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his attendance at the 60th annual Munich Security Conference. [16356/24]
Richard Boyd Barrett
Ceist:28. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his attendance at the recent Munich Security Conference. [15145/24]
Paul Murphy
Ceist:29. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his attendance at the recent Munich Security Conference. [15148/24]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 22 to 29, inclusive, together.
The previous Taoiseach attended the 60th meeting of the Munich Security Conference, a leading forum for the discussion of security and defence issues, on 16 and 17 February. The then Taoiseach participated in a panel discussion on neutrality where he set out the value of Ireland's military neutrality in a world of increased geopolitical insecurity, including new cyber and hybrid threats. He also highlighted the work of the recent consultative forum on international security policy. He spoke about how our focus on diplomacy, peacekeeping and international development can contribute to European and international security.
He also had a series of bilateral meetings, including with King Abdullah Il of Jordan, the Deputy Prime Minister of Bulgaria, the UK Labour Party leader Keir Starmer, and a delegation from the Elders group led by former President Mary Robinson. Both in public events at the conference and in his bilateral meetings, there was widespread concern at the direction of developments, including Russia's war on Ukraine, the situation in the Middle East, especially in Gaza, and prospects for global security in light of the large number of elections that will be held this year. At their meeting, the UK Labour Party leader Keir Starmer and Deputy Varadkar welcomed the restoration of the Executive and Assembly in Northern Ireland.
This was the first time a Taoiseach attended the Munich Security Conference. It raised some eyebrows but it was right for Ireland to be part of the debate on European foreign and security policy issues at this dangerous time. I refer in particular to the illegal invasion by Russia of Ukraine, the terrible events taking place in Gaza and the escalating tensions in the wider Middle East. Ireland can play a positive role in this foreign and security policy debate.
It is clear that Europe is becoming more and more concerned about its security and defence. Remarks by former US President Donald Trump have increased these concerns. Security and defence are not military matters only. We need European co-operation on issues such as terrorism, cybercrime, disinformation and the protection of critical infrastructure among other things. Irish neutrality was questioned at one of the sessions of the conference. Neutrality emphasises conflict prevention, however, and conflict prevention also helps achieve effective security.
That said, I really want to ask the Taoiseach about the situation in the Middle East. The Taoiseach has already met EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and other EU Heads of State and Government. Have we managed to get further support for a review of the EU-Israel trade association agreement and for recognition of the state of Palestine? What does the Taoiseach think is the likely EU response to the recent attack by Iran on Israel? This is focusing minds at this time.
We are dealing with the fact the western world has questions not only about security but also credibility. We know there have been absolute failings if we are speaking about the US, Germany, the British and many countries throughout the EU. We know that what Benjamin Netanyahu is involved in is absolute genocidal slaughter. We know there are absolute fears about an escalation and the issues with regard to Iran at this time. There are two issues with Mr. Netanyahu; there are his particular views, which are reprehensible, and there is also the fact that here is a guy trying to save his job. The Palestinian people are paying with their lives.
We all welcome what has happened with regard to the moves towards recognising the state of Palestine. We want to see it. We know there have been positive relationships and interactions with Malta, Slovenia, Spain, Belgium and Norway. Are these the countries we are speaking about? Are there more? Do we have a timeline with regard to recognition? I would also follow up on whether we think there will be some element of review of the EU-Israel association agreement.
I would like there to be governmental support for the Illegal Israeli Settlements Divestment Bill. There are promises with regard to ISIF of divestment from €2.9 million of the €4.2 million of Irish State money in companies that are benefiting from apartheid Israeli settlements. We need to make sure this is complete and that we follow through. I would like to see the legislation being the means but I do not particularly care once we do the right thing. We will have continuity of protests every Wednesday. The Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign, IPSC, is protesting in the Market Square, Dundalk. It has scheduled an event in the Redeemer centre on Thursday. We need to see everybody in here and outside putting on all the pressure they can. While only certain countries, particularly the US, can make things move, we have to do those bits that we can.
There will be another national demonstration this Saturday in support of the people of Gaza and Palestine. The very simple demand will be for sanctions on Israel now. The simple inescapable fact is that the genocide that Israel is inflicting on Gaza and the horrors that have been inflicted on its people could not happen if Israel did not get EU favoured trade status, weapons from Germany, the UK and the United States, and impunity for decades for crimes against the Palestinian people. This is a fact. Without this sponsorship, support and impunity, this horror would never have happened. That is the responsibility of western governments.
I want to let the Taoiseach know about a really shocking example of the lengths that some of Israel's sponsors will go to in order to suppress free discussion, as well as the complicity of western governments. This occurred during the Palestine conference that took place in Berlin at the weekend, a few weeks after the Munich Security Conference, where a conference that was organised by Jewish Voice for Peace, JVP, human rights campaigners and Palestinian rights campaigners was stormed by hundreds of German riot police. People speaking at it were to include a UN special rapporteur, a former Greek finance minister, me, as a representative of this Parliament, Dutch MPs and many Jewish people, who are opponents to what Israel is doing. In fact, one of the first people to be arrested was a Jewish activist with a banner that said: "Jews against genocide". He was arrested for carrying a banner that said: "Jews against genocide" by a German Government that claimed the conference was "antisemitic".
I thank the Deputy.
You could not make this stuff up. An open letter has gone around to the Taoiseach and all Deputies in this House to protest to the German ambassador about that suppression of free discussion and freedom of assembly. I encourage Members to sign that letter.
The attendance of the Taoiseach’s predecessor, Deputy Varadkar, at the Munich Security Conference, was significant. It was part of a drive that has been ongoing under Deputies Varadkar and Micheál Martin to erode whatever is left of neutrality and to display to the world that we are serious about this stuff, and that they should not worry because we will grow out of the immature neutrality.
My basic question is regarding whether the Taoiseach intends to continue in the same vein. Deputies Varadkar and Micheál Martin crossed a number of lines that had not previously been crossed. Yet, the one that Deputies Varadkar and Micheál Martin very much had in their sight is the question of the triple lock. The triple lock is the only legal provision that meant that a Government that clearly supported the US in its invasion of Iraq and facilitated the invasion of Iraq through its use of Shannon Airport, could not legally send ordinary Irish soldiers to go, fight and die in a war for oil and profit in the Middle East on behalf of the US.
A recent opinion poll very interestingly showed people's attitudes towards an EU army. The higher the income group a person is from, the more in favour they are of an EU army. The lower the income group a person is from, the less in favour they are of an EU army. Why is this the case? Quite obviously, it is because it is those who are in lower-income groups who will be disproportionately involved in going to fight in these wars. Is the Taoiseach still intending to proceed with this attempt to dismantle the triple lock, which protects some part of what is left of our neutrality?
I call on the Taoiseach to conclude.
There were a lot of very important issues, so let me try to take them. First, in response to Deputy Haughey, on the day on which I assumed this office, I spoke to the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, to outline to him Ireland's ongoing support for the people of Ukraine, for their territorial integrity and for the European values of freedom. I had further discussions with European colleagues in Warsaw and Brussels on the importance of Europe continuing to stand in full stead behind Ukraine.
The Deputy asked specifically about Iran and Israel. It is right and proper that the Tánaiste and I, on behalf of the Government, have condemned the large-scale attacks by Iran on Israel. These reckless attacks were a significant escalation of the situation. They were a flagrant threat to international peace and security and we continue to call on all parties to show maximum restraint because the stability of the region is at grave risk. As any further escalation will have catastrophic consequences for millions of civilians, both Ireland and the European Union should be using our voices and influence for restraint and de-escalation.
As for the recognition of the state of Palestine, it is my intention, as well as those of the Tánaiste and the Government, that Ireland will recognise the state of Palestine. I had two opportunities to meet the Spanish Prime Minister last week, including when I welcomed him to Government Buildings last Friday, where we had a detailed discussion in this regard. It is the position of the Government that we wish to recognise the state of Palestine. Both the Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, and I agreed last Friday that we would continue to co-ordinate our efforts to recognise a Palestinian state, alongside a number of like-minded countries. It is important that recognition should be done in a way that can have the most positive impact on the situation on the ground. I do not wish to put a specific timeframe on the record of the House now other than to state my own assessment, which is that time is coming much closer. I believe that if a number of countries were to recognise a Palestinian state at the same time, it would give weight to that decision. Tomorrow, I will travel to Brussels for the European Council, which will be held on Wednesday and Thursday, where I will continue to have an opportunity to engage with Heads of Government of like-minded countries. We do not have a published list, which Deputy Ó Murchú asked for, but indeed, he has mentioned a number of countries that have indicated publicly a similar open-mindedness to perhaps recognising the state of Palestine.
As a country, we are and always have been clear that the only way to achieve lasting peace and stability in the region is through the implementation of a two-state solution with Israeli and Palestinian states living side by side in peace and security, with Israel having a right to security, peace and safety and Palestine having a right to safety and peace as well.
On the specific question on the association agreement, my predecessor, Deputy Varadkar, signed a letter, again with Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, to the President of the Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, asking the European Union to review the association agreement with Israel, specifically from the point of view of human rights, as well as compliance with international human rights law. That is an appropriate thing to do. This is a country that values international human rights law. When I met President von der Leyen last Thursday, I took the opportunity to raise this issue with her directly. I outlined to her the rationale behind that letter. Our point was that because we all want to see a ceasefire, we therefore should always consider all the levers at our disposal to help bring about the pressure to create a ceasefire. A collection of other countries have done similar. I believe the US and the UK have both given consideration to a similar review. I think the President will reflect on my comments but she also pointed out that it is open to foreign affairs ministers to consider these matters at the Foreign Affairs Council, FAC, which I believe is due to have an engagement with the Israeli foreign minister shortly. I will continue to keep in close contact with the Tánaiste about this.
To be clear, Ireland and the Irish Government remain fully committed to our policy of neutrality. It is entirely possible, plausible, credible and, in fact, necessary that we, as a neutral member state, not excuse ourselves from discussions on defence and security. That is quite important. We have an obligation. The first obligation of a government is to the security of its state, its people and their safety. That is something that we should not shirk from and that is not the same as being militarily aligned. There is no question of Ireland’s eroding or leaving its position of military neutrality. That is not the position of the Government. I do not believe it is the position of this House and I do not believe it is the position of the majority of people in this country. Yet, I do think it is important that as a country we do not shy away from having a discussion about defence and security within those confines. I commend the Tánaiste on his leadership in this regard. On the triple lock, I support the direction of travel outlined by the Tánaiste because I do not think it is appropriate that a country like Russia can effectively have a veto on where we send peacekeeping troops. At the moment, we can either trust the Irish Parliament and the Oireachtas, or allow Putin to decide where we can send our peacekeeping troops. The Deputy and I have a different view on that but that is clearly my view. It is one that the Government will bring forward through legislation but it is important that we tease all these matters out in this House and that is certainly our intention.
What about the question on divestment?
Is there to be no answer for me?
Sorry, can the Deputy remind me? These questions go far away from the attendance of my predecessor.
I asked about the conference in Germany.
I do not think it would be appropriate for me to comment on the record of the House on policing decisions that have been made in another EU member state but I will familiarise myself with the letter that the Deputy says has been sent to me. I have yet to see it.
In relation to divestment, I welcome the decision that has been taken by ISIF last week. I appreciate Deputy Ó Murchú's comments about not being overly concerned about how these things are done, as long as these things are done. Let me seek a view from the Minister for Finance and I will correspond with the Deputy on that.