Seán Haughey (Dublin Bay North, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the ambassador for his comprehensive report on the forthcoming Presidency. I hope it does not have too many unexpected events or black swans, as he calls them. I welcome that Spain's Presidency is going to be a sustainable Presidency and that it is very conscious of that. It is obvious that a lot of preparation has gone into this Presidency. A general election is taking place on 23 July. Does His Excellency think that might disrupt the Presidency in any way? Is he hopeful that there will be a government, parliament and committees in place and so forth and that it will not be too disruptive to the plans? I suspect it is not ideal to have a general election in the middle of a Presidency, or rather at the beginning of a Presidency. I would be interested in his views on that.

His Excellency talked about the community of Latin America and the Caribbean states. There is a summit taking place on 17 and 18 July. I am just checking something here. The Prime Minister of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, says Europe needs more allies than it has now and Spain is convinced that Latin America and the Caribbean region can and must be among them. Does His Excellency think Spain brings special qualities and skills to cement that particular relationship? How confident is he that we can gain more allies in that part of the world?

I would also raise the issue of migration. I am aware that justice ministers agreed a plan on 8 June but Hungary and Poland were a bit disruptive at the recent European Council meeting in relation to the way forward. I agree that we need more legal pathways for migrants to come to the European Union. I would confirm that these are justice matters. Ireland has opted, and will continue to opt, in to any agreements that are reached. That is just a comment. I wish His Excellency well in trying to finalise that particular issue, which is a major challenge for the European Union.

I have one extra question. His Excellency talked about strategic autonomy. Ursula von der Leyen has talked about de-risking in respect of China. The European Union and individual member states are trying to adopt a policy towards China. There are obvious risks in relation to Chinese policies. Could His Excellency confirm that the European Union will continue to raise human rights issues as they arise in China? Obviously there are economic issues and the need to de-risk and so forth but I would just be hopeful that human rights issues in China, which are obvious, would be raised in the context of this Presidency.