Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I acknowledge the Chairman's words of condolence, sympathy and support at this very difficult time for this country, but in particular for those families bereaved and affected by the tragedy in Berkeley, California. We would be happy to keep the Chairman and committee fully updated and informed on this issue. I thank the committee for inviting me to discuss the role of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade on the matter of requests to permit landings by foreign military aircraft at Irish airports and their passage through Irish airspace.

As a former member of the Committee, I am a strong supporter of its role and believe it has the capacity to make an important positive contribution to our democratic process. It is with some alarm that I note that my replacement is only going before the committee today, which means that I have been marked absent from committee meetings over the past 12 months. In terms of a league table of committee attendance, parliamentary appearances or otherwise, I certainly would not like to have a very poor attendance rate at this committee. I am sure the Chairman would use his good offices to assure the appropriate clerk that I have not been active participant, nor indeed, I think, a member of the committee since May of last year. I wish Deputy Anthony Lawlor every success as my replacement. This is an important committee and, if I may say so, I feel my membership of, attendance at and contribution to it over the past years illustrated the high regard in which I held it and the Chairman's role.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade has been happy to co-operate fully with the committee’s consideration of this petition. In response to queries raised by the committee, written replies issued from my Department in December 2013 and May 2014. The Department's Secretary General, Niall Burgess, met with the committee last December and subsequently sent a written response to a number of follow-up queries. I trust that this intensive level of engagement has proven useful to the committee's deliberations. It may be helpful if I offer some opening remarks, to set the scene and to touch on a few points which I understand are of particular interest to the committee. Then we can open up the discussion, if that is in order.

As the committee members will be aware, responsibility concerning the regulation of aircraft is shared between a number of Departments. My Department has the lead role in respect of foreign military aircraft. In administering this role, it consults with the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport; the Department of Defence; and the Department of Justice and Equality. Lead responsibility for the regulation of civil aircraft lies with the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport, which consults as appropriate with other Departments, including mine, on applications concerning the carriage of munitions of war.

My Cabinet colleague, the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Deputy Paschal Donohoe, discussed the regulation of civil aircraft when he met with the committee on 18 February. I shall therefore focus my remarks on the regulation of foreign military aircraft. As members are aware from previous discussions, landings and overflights by foreign military aircraft are governed by strict conditions, including that aircraft must be unarmed and must carry no arms, ammunition or explosives.

The total numbers of requests for permission for landings by foreign military aircraft at Irish airports has not varied hugely over time. Over the period 2010 to 2014, the average annual number of requests was 721. This is broadly in line with the figure for 2004, over ten years ago. The majority of requests originate from the US, with US aircraft accounting for an average of 85% of requests over the past five years. Some 1,321 requests and notifications in respect of overflights by foreign military aircraft were made last year. This represents a substantial reduction on the 2013 figure of 1,762. Data for the first quarter of 2015 suggest a continuing downward trend. Again, the majority of overflights concern US aircraft.

It is not surprising that the majority of flights arise in respect of US aircraft. As the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Deputy Paschal Donohoe, remarked when he addressed the committee in February, this is more a function of geography than policy. I am aware that in the meeting with the Minister, Deputy Donohoe, a number of members raised the issue of military neutrality and I understand that this may be among the issues that the committee wishes to discuss this afternoon. The Government is committed to the long-standing policy of military neutrality, which is characterised by non-participation in military alliances. This commitment was publicly reaffirmed in the major statement of foreign policy priorities that we published in January of this year, entitled “The Global Island: Ireland’s Foreign Policy for a Changing World”, which states that “our policy of military neutrality remains a core element of Irish foreign policy".

This policy document sets out values which guide our foreign policy. They are drawn from Article 29 of the Constitution which refers to principles including the ideals of peace and friendly co-operation amongst nations and the pacific settlement of international disputes. They are drawn also from the UN Charter and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The policy highlights the importance of international peace and stability for Ireland, stating that “supporting greater peace, security and development is also in our interest as a small country with an open economy in an ever more interconnected and uncertain world". Accordingly, we prioritise activities in support of these objectives, including our unbroken commitment over five decades to UN peacekeeping; promoting and protecting human rights; and our long-standing commitment to working through the Irish Aid programme for the eradication of poverty and hunger.

Our policy of military neutrality, accordingly, forms part and parcel of an outward-looking and proactive engagement in the international community. The long-standing practice of permitting US and other foreign military aircraft to overfly Ireland and to land at Irish airports has been considered by successive Governments to be consistent with the policy of military neutrality. We have never withdrawn or suspended the use of facilities at Shannon at any stage in the more than 50 years since arrangements were first put in place. Ireland has not entered into a military alliance with the US or with any other country or organisation.

The long-standing arrangements relating to Shannon should also be seen in the context of our strong co-operative relationship with the US. We make Shannon available to the US and to other nations with which we have friendly relations. Our relationship with the US has evolved from and been strengthened by the personal ties that bind our citizens. Our Governments co-operate closely on many fronts. We should not confuse the concept of military neutrality with political neutrality. The US has been a major positive influence over many years in bringing about and sustaining peace in Northern Ireland. We have engaged constructively with the US administration on interim measures to address the needs of the undocumented in the US. The strong economic relations between the two countries in investment and trade represent a major driver for jobs and economic growth in Ireland.

Before I conclude, I again acknowledge the value and importance of the committee's consideration of the issues raised by the petition. The system of regulation for foreign military aircraft was put in place many years ago and the order under which I am assigned primary responsibility dates from 1952. My Department keeps arrangements under ongoing review and has revised policy and procedures incrementally in response to specific changes over time. It is important to ensure that our approach keeps pace with changing circumstances and technology and to ensure that we have in place a system which can be further adapted to take account of future change. In this context, the committee's work is timely and will be particularly helpful in identifying issues to be addressed. I will be happy to ensure that all due account is taken of the committee's conclusions and recommendations.