Mary Lou McDonald
Ceist:1. Deputy Mary Lou McDonald asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on social affairs and public services will next meet. [21362/24]
Ceisteanna - Questions
Cabinet Committees
Richard Boyd Barrett
Ceist:2. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on social affairs and public services will meet next. [21751/24]
Paul Murphy
Ceist:3. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on social affairs and public services will meet next. [21754/24]
Cian O'Callaghan
Ceist:4. Deputy Cian O'Callaghan asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on social affairs and public services will meet next. [21763/24]
Mick Barry
Ceist:5. Deputy Mick Barry asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on social affairs and public services will next meet. [22345/24]
Paul McAuliffe
Ceist:6. Deputy Paul McAuliffe asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on social affairs and public services will meet next. [22350/24]
Ruairí Ó Murchú
Ceist:7. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on social affairs and public services will next meet. [22677/24]
Mick Barry
Ceist:8. Deputy Mick Barry asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on social affairs and public services will meet next. [22816/24]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 1 to 8, inclusive, together.
The Cabinet committee on social affairs and public services, which oversees the implementation of programme for Government commitments in the areas of social policy and public services, was re-established when new Cabinet committees were put in place following the appointment of the new Government in April. The committee last met on 20 November and will next meet on 4 July. It covers a range of topics, with a particular focus on equality and public service reform. Other topics covered by it include sport, social protection, arts and culture, and justice issues such as policing reform, community safety and domestic, sexual and gender-based violence. The corresponding committee met on six occasions last year. Among other matters, the committee discussed the proposed referendums on gender equality and implementation of the third domestic, sexual and gender-based violence strategy.
In addition to attending meetings of the Cabinet committee, I have regular engagements with Ministers at Cabinet and individually to discuss issues relating to their Departments.
I want to raise the issue of the number of gardaí, specifically the resource allocation model, because there is a shortage of gardaí right across the State. It is very pronounced and no more so than in my county, Meath. County Meath has the lowest number of gardaí per head of population in the State, at in the region of 142 per 100,000 people. The next worst is County Kildare, which has an additional 30 gardaí per 100,000 people. The best is Waterford, which has more than double the figure for Meath. The problem is that, because of the resource allocation model, those counties that are the worst stay the worst. Historic strength has such an important role to play in the allocation of resources. Is the Government, including the Taoiseach, concerned about this? Is the Government going to address it?
This is a local issue but it speaks volumes about a bigger one. I was pretty shocked by an advertisement I was sent last night relating to Dalkey Garda station, which is up for sale. It has been sitting derelict for about a decade. I cannot believe it is being sold. Local community groups and other organisations are crying out for spaces to use, we have a massive housing crisis, there is a lack of homeless accommodation and there is a need for social and affordable housing, yet a State agency is selling off a Garda station that is sitting derelict. It is a big site right in the heart of Dalkey. The sale is outrageous. Apparently, the building will be up for auction in the next month, but I really wonder what we are doing is selling off public sites when we are crying out for them for community use or social and affordable housing. I ask the Taoiseach to look into this. It is not just a matter of the site in question. I do not know what exactly is happening at Deansgrange Garda station, which is also empty and derelict when places are needed for community organisations and social housing is needed. The station should be for community and public benefit.
Last night, there was an arson attack on St. John's House, Tallaght, which is due to be used for international protection applicants. This is about the 30th arson attack over the past few years. It fits the same pattern as the others, pointing to the same far-right agitators coming in and spreading lies, hate and division. This results in the sort of horrific attack that has happened. St. John's House is not just for housing international protection applicants because it also houses Jigsaw, a young people's mental health service, and restaurants. The attack proves that the people spreading the hate and carrying out the attacks are not about building up communities or having more resources for communities. All they want to do is spread destruction, violence and fear. The vast majority of people in Tallaght will reject this hatred and the attack absolutely. They will ask the very valid question as to why there was no private security at the site. We know that a very small minority is unfortunately targeting the sites and that they need to be protected. The people will say there is a real problem with communication from the Government. The proposal for the site was first reported in the local news in January but we did not get any accurate information until about two weeks ago. In that vacuum, the bad actors spread their lies. The lie is circulating that there will be 3,500 people in the centre. It is completely ridiculous. It looks like the accurate figure, at the end of two phases, will end up at 350. The lie has been spread that the applicants are completely unvetted and bring criminality with them. There is no basis in fact for that.
Accurate information needs to be given to communities in a timely manner because otherwise people are given this space.
St. Killian's Special School in Mayfield on the north side of Cork city is a wonderful school that has 93 children attending. That figure will rise to 99 in September. The school has need of a psychologist, a speech and language therapist and an occupational therapist, and perhaps a play therapist and a behavioural therapist. Before Christmas, the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, told school representatives that grant aid would be available for procuring private therapists for this work. The school lined up a reputable company to provide an integral service three days per week. It then waited and waited. Every week, it has been told the grant aid will come next week but the green light never comes. Staff and parents now wonder if it will even be in place for September.
The arrangement mentioned has been put in place for other schools. No new ground is being broken here. When will St. Killian's get the good news it deserves and was promised?
Two months ago, the Government disastrously lost two referendums. It spent €23 million to run the referendums. At the time, we in Aontú, the only party that opposed the referendums, stated clearly that the Government was misleading the people in respect of the tax elements that would affect the people, what was meant by durable relationships and how the courts would see it, and what was meant by the immigration elements. Since the referendums, we have found that the Attorney General agreed with us and stated there would be a lack of clarity in the courts on the definition of a "durable relationship". He also stated there was no clarity around the definition of "strive". We also read in yesterday's edition of The Irish Times that Revenue officials warned privately that the family referendum would force tax changes and that consequent legislation would be necessary. We know the Department also warned the Government about potential confusion around the issue of immigration.
Right through that referendum campaign, all Ministers stated there was no confusion around those issues. All of the evidence that has come out since has shown that Ministers were not telling the truth. They were lying about what happened. They were misleading the people of the country. I would like for the Taoiseach to-----
The Deputy must withdraw that remark about lying.
If anybody has a thesaurus I can use that will give the understanding that the Government did not tell the truth, I will use a different word, if necessary. It is important that the Government takes responsibility, investigates why Ministers were misleading the people and comes clean and apologies to the people of Ireland for the information it shared at that key moment.
I do not intend to rerun the referendum campaign. I have no doubt that people engaged in good faith on a variety of sides.
They were advised in one way and gave advice in the other direction.
I was going to make a point with which the Deputy might agree. The issue of providing clarity on legal advice during a referendum campaign is important. When I was the Minister for Health, there was a referendum campaign on which the Deputy and I were on different sides. However, we had a précis paper that allowed me to share with the Dáil in some guise the legal advice that was available to the Government. There is benefit in that approach to informed debate. I make that as a separate but somewhat related point.
Other Deputies raised a range of other issues. I will follow up in respect of St. Killian's Special School. I will ask the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, for an update and a timeline.
I asked about St. Killian's Special School.
That was what I meant to say. It is what is written on my sheet of paper. I will get an update for the Deputy from the Minister of State.
I share Deputy Paul Murphy's view on how appalling arson attacks are. One struggles to comprehend how, at a time of constraint in capacity, housing supply, accommodation and shelter for a whole variety of needs in our country, people who profess to be speaking up for people - when of course they speak for no one and have no mandate - would take any action to reduce, constrain and constrict further supply. That is idiotic, as well as being a disgusting act of criminality and an attempt to intimidate people. I am conscious there will be a live Garda investigation into that event.
The issue the Deputy raised about security is important and I will talk to the Minister, Deputy O'Gorman, about it. I also take the point that the Government needs to build its communications capacity with communities. We had a discussion on that topic at the most recent Cabinet committee on migration. The people working in the community engagement team are doing a good job and I am sure that is the Deputy's experience. They are good, decent and hard-working people. I am sure they would like more colleagues and I am looking to see what we can do in that regard.
I will inquire about Dalkey Garda station. I know the village well and I know the site is being sold. I will also seek an update on Deansgrange Garda station. I know from travelling around the country and from my own constituency that a variety of different approaches are being taken. I know of some cases where former Garda stations have been repurposed for community use. I can think of one example in my constituency that is now used as a Civil Defence base. There are such examples but others have been sold on the open market. I will get a better understanding of which approach the Garda decides to take and why, and find out if it will first engage with communities and the local authority on the use of the Garda station. I will ask the Minister for Justice to come back to the Deputy on the issue.
Deputy O'Rourke asked about Garda numbers and raised a particular issue about resource allocation. I am not saying the following to pass the buck but as a statement of fact. Resource allocation is a matter for the Garda Commissioner.
That is not the case all the time. I have heard the Minister say the opposite at times.
Allow the Taoiseach to answer.
I know the Deputy has an interest in Meath. I am conscious of the fact that particular parts of the country have experienced significant population growth. Those areas include Meath, Kildare, my own county of Wicklow and others. I am concerned about the fair distribution of Garda numbers as we grow them. I will ask the Minister for Justice to give a view from the Garda Commissioner.
Climate Change Policy
Mary Lou McDonald
Ceist:9. Deputy Mary Lou McDonald asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the final Climate Action Plan 2023 progress report, published by his Department in March 2024. [21666/24]
Mick Barry
Ceist:10. Deputy Mick Barry asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the final Climate Action Plan 2023 progress report, published by his Department in March 2024. [22346/24]
Richard Boyd Barrett
Ceist:11. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the final Climate Action Plan 2023 progress report, published by his Department in March 2024. [22691/24]
Paul Murphy
Ceist:12. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the final Climate Action Plan 2023 progress report, published by his Department in March 2024. [22693/24]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 9 to 13, inclusive, together.
The Department of the Taoiseach prepares progress reports on the delivery of measures committed to under the climate action plan. These progress reports provide a detailed breakdown of completed and delayed actions and are published online, once considered by Government. The final progress report relating to the Climate Action Plan 2023, CAP 23, was published on 5 March last. It provides information on actions that were due to be completed in quarter 4 of 2023.
The report is framed around the six high-impact sectors for climate action, comprising agriculture, transport, electricity, buildings, land use and industry. The report also provides updates on established performance indicators, sectoral emissions trends and high-impact actions. In total, 161 new actions were scheduled to be completed in quarter 4 of 2023. Ninety-six of those, or 60%, were delivered during the three months in question. For 2023 as a whole, 188 of 290 actions were delivered, giving an overall implementation rate of 65% for CAP 23.
High-impact actions completed in quarter 4 of 2023 included 65 new and enhanced services in 2023 under the Connecting Ireland public transport programme, linking 194 towns nationwide; a record budget allocation for Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland, SEAI, retrofit schemes, which supported over 47,800 property upgrades in 2023, a 76% increase on 2022 delivery; releasing a new national adaptation framework for public consultation; delivery of green skills apprenticeships, including new modules and courses in near-zero energy buildings and modern methods of construction; and commencing the solar for schools programme, which will roll out on a phased basis to include 4,000 schools nationwide.
The 2024 update of the climate action plan continues this focus on delivery of high-impact actions, including those from last year that were not completed by year end, as well as new actions included for 2024. The most recent Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, inventory figures show that Ireland’s emissions fell by nearly 2% between 2021 and 2022. While the EPA has not yet released its figures for 2023, published figures from the SEAI suggest that energy emissions fell by 7% overall with emissions from electricity falling by 21%. Continued, and indeed faster, delivery of actions under the climate action plan is essential in the face of our commitment to extremely challenging, legally-binding and essential EU and national emissions reduction targets.
Electricity emissions reductions are significantly contributed to by imported electricity. That fact should not be lost.
There are carbon budgets and sectoral emission ceilings out to 2030 but there is no plan to deliver emissions reductions to meet those targets. In fact, including the 5.25 megatonnes unallocated on an annual basis with all of the measures proposed by the Government would take us to only 42% reduction.
When will the issue of the unallocated emissions reductions be sorted? When will a plan be prepared to meet the 51% target?
The European far right rallied in Madrid last Sunday, where they were addressed by Argentina's President Javier Milei who described climate change as a socialist lie. Of course, it does not take far-right leaders to jet in from other continents to come out with this kind of nonsense. The European far right is well capable of putting it forward itself. Alternative für Deutschland is saying in this European election campaign that CO2 is not a pollutant but an indispensable component of all life. Giorgia Meloni's climate minister has said if the climate is changing, it is because of the climate. He said he did not know how much climate change was due to man and how much to the Earth's climate change.
These people having real influence in the next European Parliament could be a disaster for the climate and for the young generation particular. I note the group the Taoiseach's party is affiliated to in the European Parliament has not ruled out doing a deal with the European far right after the elections. The far right is gaining some ground, in large measure on the basis of a protest against massive social inequality which is being presided over by centre-left and centre-right parties supporting capitalism. It will be important on 7 June and that weekend throughout Europe that people vote not only against the European far right and their crazy ideas but the parties that have helped to give them a leg up by their failed policies.
Any sensible person knows there is a climate and biodiversity emergency and that, if we do not address them, we will be in trouble. As much as the far right want to deny it, the impacts will cost our society very dearly. We have to recognise that large numbers of people have become alienated from the climate action and biodiversity action agenda because they see climate action as a punishment rather than as improving their lives. We have to change this. If we do not recognise that we are losing the room with a lot of people on this issue, we are heading for trouble. In fact, we are on the way there already.
What could we do to change this? We need to stop punishing people with various taxes, such as carbon taxes or excise fuel increases, and instead make people's lives better with climate action. The pace, for example, of the retrofit of council houses is pathetically slow. If we accelerated it and retrofitted people's homes whereby the homes were warmer and bills decreased, and this was done on scale, it would give people confidence in climate action. If we made public transport free and improved the quality and frequency of it, it would give people confidence in climate action. We need a radical reset, to use the language of the Housing Commission, in climate action so it makes ordinary people's lives better.
Transport is one of the top two emitting sectors of greenhouse gases. Most of this comes from private cars. To get these numbers down and improve people's lives on a daily basis, we need a massive modal shift away from cars, and people sitting in traffic for an hour on their way to work and for an hour on their way home, into quality public transport and active travel. This means investing many more billions to ensure public transport becomes frequent, green and fast for everyone in the country and provides a real alternative to the private car. It also means making public transport free to incentivise people with cars to make the shift. There is plenty of evidence from where free public transport has been introduced that a whole number of people give up their car entirely. For example, in Marseille in France, approximately 10% of people gave up their cars. At present it is often cheaper, once you already own a car, to use it as much as possible rather than to take public transport. Instead we need to switch those incentives and make public transport free for all.
Last week I was in Limerick to launch the campaign of our mayoral candidate, Ruairí Fahy. I was very taken by one of his campaign proposals to make Limerick a pilot city for free public transport. It would join the more than 100 cities throughout the world that have introduced free public transport. Would the Taoiseach support the demand for the idea of a pilot project and a trial for free public transport in Limerick which, if successful, would be rolled out throughout the country?
To respond to Deputy O'Rourke, yesterday the Government considered the climate action plan for 2024 which has now been published. Next year we will begin the process of the allocation of the unallocated emissions. We have given consideration, and the Minister Deputy Ryan has shared this with the House previously, to a number of ways this can be addressed, including technology. I am very happy to exchange further information on this in terms of where our thinking is at. I will also get Deputy O'Rourke a direct timeline for the 51%.
To respond to Deputy Barry, I oppose the far right in everything I do. I have a different political view on this but it is important that parties of the centre do not allow vacuums in debates on policies such as migration and stop vacuums that are exploited by the far right. The best way of keeping the far right out of power is to continue to elect centrist parties so that the EPP has enough critical mass in the next European Parliament. Obviously we have a very different view on this. The people will decide in the election.
I was agreeing with Deputy Boyd Barrett for the first couple of sentences and then we had a point of disagreement. I do believe we have to bring people with us when it comes to climate. One of the big challenges we face at present is that often, and I do not just mean for us in Ireland but for the world, climate can seem terribly lectury, so to speak. The science is very clear. There is a climate emergency, the planet is on fire and we need to take significant action. I am fully signed up for all of the climate targets. When one portrays this as meaning the family farm is no longer viable, this zero-sum game does not work. We have to incentivise and help people to make the transition so they can continue to produce food and have food security so we can continue to have jobs and we can look at the opportunities in terms of jobs in the green economy.
Where we diverge is on the issue of taxation. By ring-fencing the money we have received we have seen significant benefit. I will quote the figures off the top of my head and I believe them to be correct. I heard them yesterday and I do not have them written in front of me. I believe we are now seeing 1,000 homes a week being retrofitted in Ireland and we are seeing approximately 100 homes a week putting solar panels on their roofs. We are beginning to see real progress on the scale we need to see in retrofitting. Be they local authority homes or private homes, it is being funded through the carbon tax. We have a different view on how to fund it but we are putting the money from the carbon tax into retrofitting, fuel poverty and the fuel allowance.
To respond to Deputy Murphy, we have taken a number of steps on reducing the cost of public transport for everybody, and we are going beyond the reduction for everyone with an even larger targeted reduction for students and young people. This is working well. We have seen a significant increase in people using public transport. We have also rolled out many new transport routes, particularly in rural Ireland. There are no plans at present to make public transport free but I am very encouraged by the positive reaction we have seen to a reduction in fares.
Foreign Conflicts
Mick Barry
Ceist:14. Deputy Mick Barry asked the Taoiseach to report on any recent discussions he has had with other world leaders in connection with the conflict in the Middle East. [22347/24]
Richard Boyd Barrett
Ceist:15. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Taoiseach to report on any recent discussions he has had with other world leaders in connection with the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict. [22692/24]
Paul Murphy
Ceist:16. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Taoiseach to report on any recent discussions he has had with other world leaders in connection with the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict. [22694/24]
Bríd Smith
Ceist:17. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Taoiseach to report on any recent discussions he has had with other world leaders in connection with the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict. [22697/24]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 14 to 17, inclusive, together.
As the House will be aware, the ongoing conflict in Gaza and the situation in the Middle East is of great international concern. The phrase "ongoing conflict" does not in any way capture the scale of the humanitarian catastrophe we are now seeing in Gaza. Since my election as Taoiseach, I have had many discussions on the situation with my international counterparts.
The issue was discussed at the special meeting of the European Council in April, when leaders committed to working with partners to end the conflict in Gaza without delay and called for an immediate ceasefire, the release of all hostages and full, rapid and unhindered access to humanitarian aid at scale. We also discussed the need to avoid escalation of tensions in the region, notably in Lebanon. We confirmed our determination to support the most vulnerable people in Lebanon, including refugees, internally displaced persons and host communities in need.
While at the European Council, I took the opportunity to engage a number of my counterparts in the margins of the meeting, including on the question of recognition of Palestine.
I have also engaged extensively on the subject in my bilateral engagements, including my meetings with the President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, and President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, in Brussels on 11 April. In my meeting with President von der Leyen, in addition to discussing the very concerning current situation, I raised the letter that the Prime Minister of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, and the former Taoiseach had written to her, asking for a review of Israel’s obligations under the EU-Israel association agreement. It remains my expectation that the Commission should carry forward a review. That remains the position of Ireland and I reiterated it to the President of the Commission. It is very much my view as well.
The situation in the Middle East was the main topic of discussion in my meeting with Prime Minister of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, when I hosted him here in Dublin on 12 April. We have remained in close contact in recent weeks, including on the question of recognition of Palestine. Today, Ireland, Norway and Spain have taken the decision in lockstep to recognise the state of Palestine. Last week I spoke specifically about the Middle East in calls with the Prime Minister of Slovenia, Robert Golob; King Abdullah of Jordan; the Prime Minister of Norway, Jonas Gahr Støre; and the President of Israel, Isaac Herzog. The issue also came up in my call last week with the Prime Minister of Australia, Anthony Albanese. In all my conversations I have made clear the Government’s wish to see an immediate ceasefire, the immediate and unconditional release of hostages and urgent and unhindered access for humanitarian aid into Gaza. I have also been very clear in all my calls about Ireland's wish to recognise the state of Palestine and our belief that a two-state solution is essential to peace and stability in the region. These extensive contacts facilitated the announcement by the Government today with our partners in Spain and Norway that we are recognising the state of Palestine. With this announcement, I am confident that further countries will join us in taking this important step in the coming weeks. I encourage them to do so.
In my call with the King of Jordan, he briefed me on regional efforts to create a context for peace, as well as the considerable and commendable role Jordan is playing in providing humanitarian relief. In my conversation with President Herzog, I set out clearly the Government’s position on Gaza, including our deep concern about the potential for catastrophe in Rafah. I expressed our view that peace and security for Israel and Palestine can only be built on a two-state solution, and outlined to the Israeli President our intention to recognise the state of Palestine. I also made clear Ireland’s abhorrence of Hamas and Ireland’s support for the immediate and unconditional release of hostages. The situation in the Middle East has also come up in conversations I have had with other leaders, including President Zelenskyy of Ukraine and the British Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak. I will continue to avail of every possible opportunity to call for an immediate ceasefire and to express our belief that long-term peace and security for the people of Palestine and the people of Israel can only be achieved through a two-state solution, with an Israeli and a Palestinian state living side by side together.
Listening to the Taoiseach, the thought struck me as to when the Prime Minister of Spain might recognise the state of Catalonia, but in any case, I welcome the recognition of the state of Palestine insofar as it goes. I do not welcome the fact that the Taoiseach has attempted to link this to the idea of a two-state solution brokered by the international community, in other words, by the US and European Union imperialism first and foremost. That is a formula for a Palestinian Bantustan, not national liberation. There needs to be an end to the genocidal Israeli capitalist regime. It is a barrier to Palestinian liberation that needs to be dismantled. A struggle by the mass of the Palestinians allied with working people in this region is key to winning this. I would welcome any challenge to that regime that would come from the Israeli Jewish working class, who have more in common at the end of the day with their Palestinian counterparts than they have with the war criminals who run their country. Both peoples, in my view, have an equal right to national self-determination. Israel's bloody, genocidal campaign needs to be replied to, not merely with recognition of the state of Palestine but with actions such as expelling the ambassador, kicking the US war machine out of Shannon, passing and implementing the occupied territories Bill and suspending the EU-Israel trade agreement.
The people of this country in their majority have long recognised Palestine. Finally, the Government has caught up with the people. It is a pity it has taken seven months of a genocidal massacre in Gaza and decades of ethnic cleansing by Israel, illegal occupation, the siege of Gaza and brutal suppression of Palestinian rights, but it is a step forward. It will mean very little if it is just symbolic. It has to be accompanied by sanctions to stop the genocide and by a recognition that a state that commits genocide in Gaza, a state that is based on apartheid and on decades of ethnic cleansing, is not a normal state. It needs to be denormalised and dismantled. The Taoiseach asked earlier what we meant when we spoke about this. I would like to ask him if apartheid has any place in the world. Does he put a free and liberated Palestine beside an apartheid State of Israel? That is what two states means. I say apartheid has no place in the world. A free and liberated Palestine would give equality, freedom and self-determination to everybody, regardless of whether they were Muslim, Jewish, Christian or of no religion. In respect of anywhere else in the world, that is what the Taoiseach would probably argue for too. Yet when it comes to Palestine, we argue for apartheid-type partition.
If it is just symbolic and we keep making reference to that, Israel is not going to stop. It is absolutely clear. They are unapologetic about the genocide. They are unapologetic about apartheid. The United States are standing behind them, cheering them on, and indeed even threatening the International Criminal Court for calling for prosecutions against this state. The world has to recognise that Israel is a rogue regime like apartheid South Africa. That apartheid system and the occupation have to be dismantled if we want peace.
Two days ago, the International Criminal Court prosecutor, Karim Khan announced that he was pursuing arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and the Minister for Defence, Yoav Gallant, for a range of war crimes. One of the war crimes he was seeking the arrest warrant for was that of starvation of civilians as a method of warfare. That is correct, in my opinion. It therefore is horrifying that the Israeli ambassador, the representative of a regime that is currently engaged in the war crime of starvation of civilians as a method of warfare, was invited to the national Famine commemoration. It was a political decision to invite the representative of this regime because a political decision was made not to invite the Russian ambassador, for example. I would like the Taoiseach to explain to us how it is appropriate in any sense to have a representative of such a genocidal regime, which is implementing starvation on the people of Gaza as we speak, present at an event to commemorate the Famine here. It is absolutely outrageous and boggles the mind as to how it was proceeded with.
I welcome the recognition of the state of Palestine that the Government is going to engage in. It is thanks to the movement from below. It was in the programme for Government of the last Government but was not implemented. People power of this country has demanded it. It needs to be matched with actions against Israel. It is a very concrete thing. The Israeli ambassador has now been withdrawn for discussions. The Taoiseach should say she is not welcome back. We do not want the Israeli ambassador back. The Irish ambassador to Israel is being summoned to meet with Netanyahu or the foreign minister or whoever. I do not think we should be playing this game. We should say we are expelling the Israeli ambassador from Ireland. That would also have enormous public support in this country.
The first thing I want to say, and I am very conscious of it on a day like today, but it is important to say this, is that what happened on 7 October was an horrific terrorist attack. It was a massacre of people at a music festival. We have seen people who were killed, assaulted, raped, taken hostage, including children, including an Irish-Israeli girl. We should never forget that, brush over it or jump over it. The impact that had on the people of Israel, on their sense of security, should never be underestimated.
Countries have a right to defend themselves, but what we have seen happen - I have said this consistently over a significant period - has gone from being anything like the right of a country to defend itself to what looks like revenge, to what is a war on children and on to what has been catastrophic in terms of its impact on civilians and civilian infrastructure. We are now seeing people starving and, in many ways, being starved as a result of an inability or refusal to allow humanitarian aid access into Gaza in any sort of way of scale that is required.
Along with the leaders in of the coalition Government, I wanted us to recognise the state of Palestine today because it is true this has been in programmes for Government before and these, including this one, have generally said it would be recognised as part of a peace process to bring about a two-state solution. In many ways, that peace process or a sustainable, just peace seem farther away than ever before. In consultation with Spain, Norway and others, we believed it was important to keep the destination of a two-state solution alive and that we would recognise the state of Palestine today to create some degree of positive momentum and some degree of hope. I expect other countries to follow suit.
We have been clear that we recognise the 1967 borders, but there will have to be a peace process. There will have to be a political process to bring about peace in the region. We are a long way from the time when the Oslo Accords took place, some 30 years ago now. We need the violence to stop, an immediate ceasefire, the hostages to be released unconditionally, humanitarian aid to flow and a political process. People on this island, and, indeed, on these islands, know better than most that the only way you end violence and provide people with security and peace is, ultimately, through a political process.
In the context of the Israeli ambassador's attendance at our national day of commemoration, rather than fixating on her attendance there, I was more concerned as to the message I delivered in her presence calling out clearly what I believe are the actions of Israel in inflicting starvation on people in Gaza, including children, and the devastating humanitarian consequences that will continue to have.
I thank the Taoiseach for that response. A little over seven minutes are left. There are three Deputies here.
Is it seven minutes or two minutes?
Sorry, we have 45 minutes for this slot collectively. Seven minutes are left and three Deputies are in the Chamber now. Do they wish to take the remaining questions?
We probably would not have enough time.
No, because the questions would all have to include a response from the Taoiseach as well. That concludes this session.
Is féidir teacht ar Cheisteanna Scríofa ar www.oireachtas.ie.
Written Answers are published on the Oireachtas website.
Cuireadh an Dáil ar fionraí ar 2.02 p.m. agus cuireadh tús leis arís ar 3.02 p.m.
Sitting suspended at 2.02 p.m. and resumed at 3.02 p.m.