Eric Byrne (Dublin South Central, Labour) | Oireachtas source

We are meeting on a regular basis with the ambassador under tragic circumstances. I thank him and his staff, who in terms of the many engagements they are attending on behalf of the French people, are representing them well. I understand President Hollande was in the thick of the attack in terms of his being at a football match at the time. What is most impressive and reassuring to us as Irish people and as Europeans, and I am sure to the French people, is President Hollande's sombre, respectful yet authoritative status as he projects to the world how France proposes to address this terrible situation. From a diplomatic point of view, France is reacting very professionally. I am sure that is being replicated through all of its embassies around the world.

When we first met I recall congratulating the ambassador on the brave steps being taken by France, on its own, to address terrorism in Africa. We recently witnessed a repeat of this performance in Bamako, Mali. I recall that at the time the ambassador was only recently resident here, the French took decisive action on a very important geopolitical basis.

The aim was to drive these terrorists, who tragically reappeared at Bamako in the last week, back into the north, into the desert and the regions, which made everybody safer.

Maybe this is not the occasion and maybe the Chairman will arrange a more detailed political discussion with the ambassador, but we are a young country, which is moving rapidly from a monocultural to a multicultural society. We have mosques now, which were not there when I was a kid. We have 50,000 Muslims and the census shows they are the fastest-growing religious group in the country. One has to be conscious that we in Ireland can learn from France's experiences. Could the ambassador teach us a lesson on how to prevent the ghettoisation of minorities? Maybe it is appropriate and maybe it is not on this occasion, but the word "Molenbeek" keeps coming up, time and again. Then there are the issues in Belgium. Should we start learning lessons from mistakes made regarding the concentration of alienated youth in order to prevent the radicalisation of young people in this country?