Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 30 November 2023
171. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs for an update on any recent discussions he has had in relation to the restoration of the executive in Northern Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [50269/23]
Amharc ar fhreagraIt is deeply disappointing that 18 months on from the last assembly elections, Northern Ireland's political institutions remain blocked, and as a result the North-South Ministerial Council is also prevented from fulfilling the responsibilities mandated to it by the Good Friday Agreement.
I remain in regular contact with the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland and representatives of the main Northern Ireland parties leaders to underline the importance of getting the full range of Good Friday Institutions up and running, across all its strands.
It is essential that the democratically elected representatives of Northern Ireland are allowed to take up their responsibilities and deliver on the multiple and intersecting challenges facing the people of Northern Ireland. My engagement with political and business leaders at September’s Northern Ireland Investment Summit left no room for doubt that a restored Executive would be best positioned to advance a rich array of opportunities. Elected leaders have a particular responsibility to demonstrate that politics works, and citizens deserve to see politics working.
At the British Irish Chamber of Commerce Conference on 12 October in Dublin, I discussed the challenges of Executive formation with the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland and I was in direct contact with Northern Ireland political parties in late October.
I also recognise that Northern Ireland has always been at its strongest and made its greatest strides when the Irish and British Governments have worked in close partnership. As we tackle today's political challenges, we would like to see this partnership between the two Governments deliver in the same way. I had a number of engagements with British counterparts, including Secretary of State Heaton Harris, during meetings in Dublin of the British Irish Council last week and the British Irish Inter-Governmental Conference earlier this week.
Those meetings underline the importance of structures of the Good Friday Agreement for engagement between the two Governments, providing a framework for our partnership.
