Seán Crowe (Dublin South West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I wish the Tánaiste well in the negotiations and discussions to come. He faces a difficult task with regard to the areas he must cover and I wish him well. He began his speech by referring to the Middle East, the Palestinian situation in particular, and spoke about injecting urgently needed momentum into the peace process and discussions relating to it. A position was adopted at a Council meeting 12 months ago in the context of settlement goods and strong conclusions were reached. Now, 12 months later there have been announcements relating to a further escalation of settlement colonies. Does the Tánaiste believe it is time to return to the issue of the settlement goods and a potential ban on those goods? Is it possible that would bring about political momentum and raise awareness? What specific steps will Ireland take to build on the call for an EU-wide ban on settlement goods and how will it progress action at the May Foreign Affairs Council meeting?

With regard to Syria, the Tánaiste mentioned he went through some of the refugee camps in neighbouring countries. We are aware that prior to conflict breaking out in Syria, these countries had more than 1 million refugees from Iraq, Palestinian refugees and others. These populations now face a new phase of difficulties. The Tánaiste spoke about the use of chemical weapons and expressed concern that it is possible they will be used. Did the use of rape in the Syrian and other conflicts arise in discussions and will that issue be addressed? In the case of Syria in particular, rape continues to be used by both sides and seems to be an almost institutionalised method used to break prisoners. I presume this was part of the Tánaiste's discussion with refugees. What can Ireland do with regard to this? We can certainly condemn the use of rape, but are there any active measures we can take on it?

The Tánaiste spoke about the Irish Aid hunger-nutrition-climate justice conference. What specific actions can the Government take to follow up on its recommendations? The Tánaiste said he will raise the issue, but what specific recommendations will he put to the meeting in response to the challenges outlined by President Higgins in his opening address, which focused on the detrimental impact of large scale land acquisitions, biofuel production and speculation in food commodities?

The Tánaiste also spoke about the sectarian element that keeps breaking out in many areas of conflict. Many of the countries in question are moving from secular societies towards fundamentalism. Is there any policy with regard to support for those groups looking for change? Have we a view on that? What I would like to see emerging in many of these areas is a secular society where people are not discriminated against because of their religion, their gender, their sexual orientation or the colour of their skin. Will this issue ever be discussed on the agenda of the Committee on Foreign Affairs in Europe?

With regard to the multiannual financial framework, MFF, negotiations to ensure that member states renew their commitment to 0.7% of GNI in aid, how will these commitments be met? What matters will be raised in that regard?