Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Chairperson and the members of the committee. At the outset, can I return that sentiment? I am eager to work constructively with this committee. The world is a volatile place at the moment. A country like Ireland has a role in standing up for multilateralism, human rights, international law, collaboration and co-operation at an EU level. It is a role that we all want to proudly see our country continue to play. With that in mind, at the outset I wish to pay tribute to the staff of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade - our diplomats - who are based abroad, most particularly those who have been working in the Middle East region. This afternoon, I hosted a virtual video conference call with them to be updated by them on the latest situation. During the call, I thanked for them for the work they are doing. They work hard for Ireland and work with distinction. I am conscious that they are working in a difficult, dangerous and volatile environment. I thank them and their families for the work they do on behalf of our country.

I am pleased to have this opportunity to present the 2025 Revised Estimates for the Foreign Affairs and Trade group of Votes: Vote 27, which is International Co-operation, and Vote 28, which is Foreign Affairs and Trade. Members have received the advance briefing notes provided by my Department on those two Votes. For 2025, the overall gross Estimate for this group of Votes is €1.314 billion, including a capital allocation of €50 million. This represents an increase of €103 million on the final 2024 allocation.

We are living through a period of huge geopolitical challenge and upheaval. The unprecedented intensification of the conflict we saw between Israel and Iran poses an immense risk to regional security, with developments over the weekend demonstrating the very real risk of wider escalation. The scenes we have seen of rocket attacks and civilian casualties in Iran and Israel have been disturbing. Yet again, it is a civilian population that pays the price for war. At yesterday's meeting of EU foreign ministers, I once again called for urgent steps to de-escalate the conflict and to allow for space for dialogue and diplomacy. I have also made it clear that the deliberate targeting of civilians and civilian infrastructure is a violation of international humanitarian law. We need all parties to work to see regional stability established and sustained, and we need a lasting diplomatic solution to Iran's nuclear programme. The nuclear agreement that has been in place over many years has been imperfect, but we can objectively say that we have achieved more as a world through diplomacy in preventing Iran getting access to nuclear weapons than will ever be achieved through military aggression. I was struck by that in my engagement with European colleagues. It is through diplomacy and dialogue that we actually help to ensure that Iran never has nuclear weapons. I have not met anybody - certainly, nobody in the European Union - who wants Iran to have nuclear weapons. However, the way we advance this is through dialogue. I hope the ceasefire we have seen in the past few hours - volatile and currently temporary as it is - is now used to try to sustain a diplomatic dialogue. A ceasefire is not an end in itself. It is a means to an end, and in this case the end must be a negotiated diplomatic dialogue that brings us forward to an agreement.

We took the decision to temporarily relocate our embassy in Tehran back to Dublin. We took that decision in close consultation with European counterparts and in the interest of keeping our diplomats safe. The focus on developments in Iran is understandable. However, there will be unanimity in this committee, in these Houses and in this country that we cannot allow that to take our attention away from the catastrophic situation in Gaza. What is happening to the people of Gaza is simply unconscionable, and this is a point I made again at the Foreign Affairs Council. The renewed Israeli military offensive and the plans to establish full control of the Gaza Strip are extremely alarming. We need an urgent end to hostilities. That statement does not do any justice and cannot do any justice to the level of appalling devastation in Gaza, which is unimaginable to us and is unconscionable. From day one, we in Ireland have consistently called for a hostage release deal, for an immediate ceasefire and for humanitarian aid to flow. It is not just Gaza: although the situation in Gaza is as I have described, the situation in the West Bank is also alarming and utterly unacceptable.

Yesterday at the Foreign Affairs Council, we saw small steps of progress. It is progress that Ireland sought a long time ago and would have liked to have seen go further a long time ago. Yesterday, the Foreign Affairs Council of the European Union published the review of the association agreement between the EU and Israel. We saw the High Representative, effectively the foreign policy chief of the EU, Kaja Kallas describe clearly and publicly that the outcome of that review is that Israel is in breach of its human rights obligations under Article 2 of the agreement. We have all known that for a long time. We have been calling for that for a long time. It is not insignificant that this is now the finding of a review. Yesterday, Ireland joined nine other European countries in asking that the European Union seek legal advice on its obligations under the International Court of Justice, ICJ, advisory opinion. We have done that domestically. However, the EU has to ensure it is in compliance with the ICJ advisory opinion. We joined nine other member states in asking that they review trade in terms of goods and services at an EU level with the occupied Palestinian territories. Those are two important developments.

We need to see the high-level conference on a two-state solution in New York be rescheduled as quickly as possible. For understandable reasons, it could not happen last week as planned, but we need to see that progress. Today, the Government has agreed to progress legislation prohibiting trade with illegal settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory in line with a commitment in the programme for Government. This morning at the Cabinet meeting, I secured agreement for the general scheme. The committee will receive this shortly. It will be either later today or first thing tomorrow. I will be formally writing to the Chair, as I have to ask the committee to initiate the pre-legislative scrutiny progress. I look forward to the committee's engagement on this important legislation. I look forward to receiving their report and scrutiny as quickly as possible. I look forward to that engagement being constructive and meaningful on the part of my Department.

On the issue of services, I do not have a policy difficulty with including services, but I have to tease through the legalities of this with this the committee. As Senator Black and I discussed previously, that is what pre-legislative scrutiny is for in many ways. This is a chance to tease this through. Let us not just jump over, as we tend to do, the fact that we are the first country in the European Union to publish legislation to ban trade with the occupied Palestinian territories. That is not a small moment for this country; it is an important moment. It is reflective of how the people of this country feel relating to it.

In the context of Russia and Ukraine, Russia's brutal illegal aggression against Ukraine continues. We have seen further horrific attacks on Kyiv and cities across Ukraine over the past two weeks. Yesterday, I met with the Ukrainian foreign minister. Despite two rounds of direct talks, Russia continues to maintain its maximalist demands ahead of any ceasefire. Remember Ukraine has said it would accept an unconditional ceasefire with immediate effect, but Russia always has "if", "but" and "maybe" caveats. That is not an indication of a country that is serious about peace or ending the aggression. It is important that we continue to stand by Ukraine. This is an attack on their territory and their sovereignty, but it is an attack on our values. It is an attack on European soil. One of the most important ways that we can provide Ukraine with security guarantees is by bringing it into the European family. Yesterday, we made the point again that we want to see EU accession talks for Ukraine progress and progress as quickly as possible.

With regard to the Estimates we are considering today, it is also why I was proud to announce earlier this year an allocation of €100 million to provide non-lethal military support to Ukraine. This support will be provided through partnerships with EU member states already procuring for Ukraine.

On the issue of international co-operation and specifically Ireland's official development assistance programme, this has always been integral to our foreign policy agenda. It reflects our continuing commitment to global solidarity, fighting hunger in our world and reducing poverty. For 2025, the allocation to Vote 27 for the international development programme managed by my Department is €810.3 million. This is the highest ever level of expenditure in the 51-year history of the Irish aid programme. I want to say that because right across the world, governments, politicians and parliaments are having to make decisions about lots of competing priorities. I am proud that we live in a country where I think there is cross-party consensus on the importance of our official development assistance programme. At a time when others are cutting back, we are delivering our highest ever budget in the 51-year history of Irish aid.

The total volume of ODA delivered across government is expected to exceed €2 billion, and this includes the expected first-year costs for Ukrainian refugees in Ireland. The official figures for Ireland's ODA last year, released by the OECD in April, show a total of over €2.2 billion or 0.57% of GNP. With the Ukrainian refugee supports excluded, the ODA percentage of GDP is 0.41%, and I can provide further details on that as well. Reaching the furthest behind first is the overarching frame of Ireland's whole-of-government policy for international development. In our support for the sustainable development goals, we have a central focus on poverty, gender equality and action on climate change, while accelerating progress towards meeting the sustainable development goal targets.

Recent cutbacks in ODA by some major donors are having devastating effects in our world. Ireland is staying the course and will stay the course, and we are working closely in the European Union to make sure we co-ordinate support for our UN and other partners as they now find themselves having to restructure and reprioritise their work. For Irish development agencies, the cutbacks are also presenting significant challenges, and we have assured them that we will continue to provide support that is both predictable and flexible. I hope this will help partners to adapt as well as possible to what are rapidly changing contexts.

Over the past 20 months we have witnessed the unfolding of a humanitarian catastrophe of staggering proportions in Gaza. We have increased our support to UNRWA while others suspended theirs in 2024. We have provided €58 million to UNRWA since 2023 and we continue to advocate for partners in the EU, Arab and Gulf countries to increase their support. We continue to support the Palestinian people and the Palestinian Authority through our humanitarian programming, at the EU and at the UN. We are committed to maintaining our focus on this crisis, on the suffering in Sudan, on Ukraine and on other humanitarian crises that do not receive the same level of media attention.

Briefly on Vote 28, for 2025 the total gross expenditure allocated to Vote 28 is €503.9 million. This is an increase of 49% over the initial 2024 allocation, and the Vote is distributed across two expenditure programmes: programme A, advancing Ireland's foreign policy goals and programme B, the passport service. Programme A accounts for the bulk of the allocation to the Vote, which is €442.5 million. I will focus on some of the larger subheads, which include the bulk of the pay and non-pay administration costs, excluding the passport service. The programme also includes budget associated with the transfer of the trade policy function into my Department and the 2025 allocation to commence our EU Presidency planning for 2026 and the operations associated with that.

We have an allocation for reconciliation and North-South co-operation, and this includes funding of €2 million for the shared island civic fund. We are also currently managing an ambitious expansion of our global footprint in order to deliver on our Global Ireland commitment to double Ireland's global impact and influence to 2025 and beyond. We have opened 22 new missions to date, and this year we will open three new ones as well. The shared island initiative, as members know, is in that Vote, as are the reconciliation fund and the support for the diaspora programme of €16.495 million. The committee will also note contributions to multilateral organisations are there also.

I do not want to go on too long but I have a brief word to say with regard to the passport service. Programme B deals exclusively with funding for the passport service, a key public service provided by the Department. It is not in my script but let me say "thank you" to the passport service. The level of reform we have seen with regard to our passport service is truly impressive. I can say that because long before I was their Minister - I do not endeavour to take any political credit - it has been at an incredible level. I meet people across this country now who, in their kitchen, take out their phone, take their picture on the phone, submit the application and are pleasantly surprised at how quickly the passport arrives. I thank the people who have had to work through an extraordinarily challenging time after Covid and a very significant programme of reform. I had the honour of meeting many of them when I visited the office in Balbriggan recently. It is important to acknowledge that huge amount of work.

Over the past number of years the passport reform programme has overseen major improvements. The standout achievement of the programme was the introduction of the passport online service to our citizens. We often focus, quite rightly, on technological reforms not going well but this went very well. To date this year, over 92% of all applications from all over the world are now submitted through this online channel. The programme continues. Reform must always continue to focus on the future of service delivery by continuing to identify and implement projects to enhance the customer experience and provide for business continuity while maintaining the integrity of the Irish passport. That is really important too. It is such an important document and we need to maintain its integrity as well. We have allocated a further €16.5 million this year from my Department's capital envelope for that reform agenda.

I am very conscious that the Department is now called the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade - not because we like longer titles - and that this Oireachtas committee now encapsulates that too. With all the focus that has quite rightly and understandably been going on with regard to the Middle East in recent days and weeks, let us not forget that this day two weeks will see the ending of the current pause on tariffs between the US and the EU. I am very eager that we support this committee in its constructive and important work, and that we get a framework agreement in place by that date between the EU and the US.

In the last seven to ten days, I spoke with Ambassador Jamieson Greer, President Trump's trade representative. I spoke with Mr. Maroš Šefovi last week and we speak with him on a very regular basis. I do genuinely detect there is a real willingness on both sides to work to get a framework agreement but - I have to say "but" - looking at framework agreements we have seen with other countries and places, 10% being the new norm in terms of tariffs from a US perspective is not without very significant challenges for certain sectors of the Irish economy. We have to continue to push the zero-for-zero argument in the days ahead for as many sectors as possible, while also making sure Europe does not want to introduce retaliatory tariffs. However, if we find ourselves in the position where we have to do this, we will do our best to protect our own national interests. I think I have identified particular sectors around medtech, aviation and agrifood where we have spelled out our concerns in our letter back to the Commission. I will pause there.