Mr. Kevin Dowling:

On the question of the possibility of dumping, this is a framework agreement, so it will not, as such, provide the Vietnamese with formal greater access to the European markets than they already have. There is an opportunity under the agreement to discuss that and an intention to conclude and ratify a free trade agreement with Vietnam. As with almost all free trade agreements, if I am not incorrect, there will be anti-dumping provisions. Accordingly, the Commission will have the opportunity to arrest the possibility of the dumping of any particular commodity that would disturb the EU market. There is no additional opportunity in this agreement for dumping, and the free trade agreement will address the question of how that might develop in the future.

On the question about governance and human rights, I wish to add to what the Minister of State said. The view taken when concluding this agreement was that it needs to cover the rule of law to address human rights dialogues. It will strengthen the opportunities for the European Union to engage in the kind of dialogue that took place yesterday with Vietnam.

There was a question about where Ireland is opting out, so to speak. I am not an expert in this area. With regard to justice and home affairs, Ireland is not a member of Schengen and, therefore, has an opt-out provision when any aspect affecting Schengen is under consideration. One such aspect is visa access, as mentioned in the agreement. Ireland, the United Kingdom and Denmark will conclude as separate contracting parties. That would be a matter for the Department of Justice and Equality to examine. That is the reason we have this option.

I thank the Minister of State and the Chairman for all the questions and positive remarks about Vietnam which is also one of my favourite countries. A number of Deputies raised specific questions on human rights. Vietnam's track record on human rights is far from perfect, but we have to acknowledge that there have been significant improvements in the past ten or 20 years. They were pretty much closed to the world and the subject of UN sanctions until the early 1990s, so they have come a long way in that time. They have fairly steadily reduced the number of offences for which the death penalty applies. That is not to say that they should not abolish it altogether. The trend internationally is towards abolition. That is a point that the EU, Ireland and quite a number of other countries continue to make to them.

As regards the rights of religions, Vietnam is a single-party communist state which traditionally had a suspicious view of all religions coming from that communist tradition. This has softened considerably in recent years. During my time in Vietnam, I saw that the prime minister took quite a lot of steps towards a greater engagement with the cardinal and the Catholic church generally. A number of senior politicians in Vietnam now openly practise their own religion, whether it is Buddhism or Catholicism, all of which sends encouraging signals at the top.

I would have to say, though, that progress has not been as fast in the more remote areas. This tends to be the case in countries that are on the sort of development path that Vietnam is on. Therefore, in rural parts where there are numbers of ethnic minorities and religious groups who are perhaps seen as competing for resources in particular areas, the situation is more difficult. There have been confrontations between the police and various groups in those particular parts of Vietnam. It can be difficult for international observers to gain access to those provinces. The EU has been forthright in raising that issue, as has Ireland. Both as part of the EU and individually, we have done a lot of work with ethnic minorities in the remote highland provinces. We have seen some improvements in living standards and access to education, as well as in health and nutritional outcomes. However, I would not deny that there is a long way to go.

I firmly believe that the way to make progress is to continue engagement and support Vietnam's greater integration into the international community, as well as raising more awareness of international norms and standards, rather than non-engagement, which ultimately is neither beneficial to the country itself nor to Europe's standing in those countries. I hope that answers the question.