Mr. Conor O'Neill:

On the Deputy's first comment, it is an important point that Senator Black referenced in her opening statement. I worry that there is context at the EU level, and it could shift overnight. The first thing I do every morning when I wake up is check my phone to see if there has been a ceasefire announced. The point is that if a ceasefire is announced, please God we get to that point, the legislation here will still be necessary. The litmus test for everything we do is to ask if it is pushing us closer to a ceasefire, but also if it is pushing us closer to justice because that is the only thing that will make a ceasefire permanent. If a ceasefire happens, what we will see, and it is depressing to think about this, is that Palestine and Gaza tend to be in the news when awful things happen and the whole world pays attention to these horrific cycles of violence but when they stop, that attention lasts for a few weeks or months and then goes away. That is the terrible, awful logic that drives people to do some of what we have seen in the past months and years.

When a ceasefire comes and that shift starts to happen, it is exactly then that legislation like this is needed in order to refuse to let the media system or other European countries think we have gone back to the status quo and they can focus on something else. This is a way Ireland can say "No" and that we are going to maintain the position and try to address the root causes to make sure we are not in another year or two years calling for a ceasefire again. Justice rather than just a ceasefire is needed.