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

I welcome the Minister of State and his officials. There are a number of issues. Looking at the television, I know what they are talking about in respect of the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission, policing and so on. When the Good Friday Agreement came about, it was supposed to be something that was not just set in stone, but something organic that would grow and that we would learn from best practice. I know there are proposals relating to looking at changes relating to GSOC and so on. This controversy has highlighted the fact that there are inadequacies on both sides of the Border in respect of the structures that are there. We can learn from each other. In particular, former ombudsmen from Northern Ireland have spoken about the powers of investigation and so on. We have heard from the Victims' Commissioner who not only spoke about the difficulties she experienced in dealing with the past, but about the difficulties experienced by the victims themselves. Victims from the South told us that in order to move their cases forward, they had to go through the Victims' Commissioner in Northern Ireland. They are also saying that there was nothing similar to the historical inquiries team and no mechanism for families to move that on. If we are looking at this package, we need to look at what is working and what is not working in both jurisdictions. Those were the original ideas we had in respect of the Good Friday Agreement and how it would evolve.

I welcome the news regarding the economy. We try to sell it and agriculture on an all-Ireland basis. There are ways in which we can develop that and we should go through that. People have talked about the undocumented Irish. There was a delegation from the Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade. At that time, there was also interest from some Unionists and Nationalists in Northern Ireland. The undocumented Irish is an all-Ireland problem. One is not asked whether one is from the North or the South. Perhaps that is another area for co-operation. We will probably get one more bite af this and it would be helpful. The Unionists would have some insight into those from a Scots Unionist background in respect of talking to some of those Congressmen and Senators, which might be helpful.

The HGV issue was mentioned. An anomaly has arisen recently in respect of the new licensing system. I do not know if it has come across the Minister of State's desk and I do not expect an answer but he might put it in the mix. If someone is born in Northern Ireland, they have two choices. They can put down that they were born in the United Kingdom, which many Nationalists would have difficulties with. The other option is to put down that they were born in Northern Ireland. There is no option of stating that they were born in Ireland. It may seem to be a silly thing but families I know who had to leave Northern Ireland because of sectarianism and difficulties do not see themselves as being from Northern Ireland or the UK. They see themselves as Irish. Again, the Good Friday Agreement was to look at that. It is an anomaly that perhaps came out of the new regulations relating to border controls and might have come from the EU but I am asking if the Government can look at that.

In respect of funding for advocacy groups for victims, we are familiar with Justice for the Forgotten. Both of us have attended meetings over the meetings. The anomaly relating to whether one is from the Border region or Belfast could be looked at. When we were developing this, I do not think this anomaly was the way things were going to develop. A total of 17 people have been classified as disappeared. Again, if we are talking in terms of anomalies and disparities in the system, one of those disappeared, Seamus Ruddy, was believed to be disappeared in France. Again, his family were treated differently from other families in respect of supports. That would shock many people and is something that possibly the two Governments could look at. I know there was a request for funding from the Ball and Parry families but, again, it was outside the parameters of that funding. I do not think any of those groups which are working for peace and reconciliation but are also looking to work with victims' groups should be left out of the equation.

People have spoken about the Narrow Water Bridge. The Tánaiste appeared before the Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade which asked him about the consultative forum. He indicated that some energy would be put in to try to get agreement. What steps are being taken by the Irish and British Governments to convene that forum?