Bertie Ahern (Dublin Central, Fianna Fail)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 1 to 32, inclusive, together.

On 29 June 2006, the British Prime Minister and I met at Stormont with the Northern Ireland political parties to discuss plans to restore the democratic institutions of the Good Friday Agreement. This meeting allowed a timely opportunity to assess the work done since the recall of the Assembly on 15 May. The two Governments emphasised the need for intensified and accelerated engagement between the parties in view of the deadline of 24 November. The work plan which we published following the meeting set out an indicative timescale for full restoration of the institutions. We urged the parties to use the summer to consult with their members and communities on the way forward and to weigh in the balance any outstanding issues and any lingering mistrust against the prospect of losing devolution for another generation.

I welcome the work done since then by the Preparation for Government committee, which continued to meet over the summer. I hope the committee's work can provide the basis for reaching agreement on a range of issues relevant to the restoration of the institutions. The two Governments want to see restoration of all the institutions created by the Good Friday Agreement as soon as possible and in any event by 24 November. This is a considered, reasonable and fixed deadline. We will do everything in our power to help achieve this. There are ongoing contacts with the Northern Ireland political parties and I expect these to intensify over the coming period.

A continuing absence of the Executive and Assembly is not sustainable. It is time for elected politicians to take responsibility and they will have the opportunity to do so over the coming weeks. I believe that if the political will is there, it should be possible to address satisfactorily all outstanding issues in the time available, for Northern Ireland to settle down and for its parties to share power on the basis of the Good Friday Agreement.

The close partnership and engagement between the two Governments continues to be a vital part of the process and I welcomed the opportunity to meet again with the Prime Minister on 15 September at Chequers. We availed of this meeting to review our joint strategy for the restoration of the institutions. In this context, we agreed that we would meet together with the parties in Scotland from 11 to 13 October. In the meantime, we expect to receive a further report from the IMC in the near future. This report is due to be published next week. The most recent report from the IMC on normalisation, published earlier this month, was very encouraging and I hope that its October report will enhance confidence further. I hope the peaceful and calm marching season will also give a boost to constructive political engagement and agreement in the coming weeks.

At our meeting on 6 April, we made it clear that we would work on new British-Irish partnership arrangements to ensure our effective joint stewardship of the Good Friday Agreement in the event that devolution does not take place by 24 November. This work is ongoing. In our statement at the end of the meeting with the parties in June, Prime Minister Blair and I indicated that we would meet in December to announce details of these arrangements, should this be necessary.

We remain in close contact with the United States Administration, whose ongoing support for the process is deeply appreciated and remains invaluable. I expect that my next visit to the United States will be in March 2007 to mark St. Patrick's Day. It has been the practice in recent years to meet the Ireland-America Economic Advisory Board over the St. Patrick's Day period and I expect to do so again next year. My Department maintains contact with the board primarily through our embassy in Washington, as well as through annual visits and meetings. As the House will be aware, board members give voluntarily of their time and expertise in a number of ways. I welcome and greatly appreciate their ongoing advice and support. I received a courtesy call from the Governor of Florida, Mr. Jeb Bush, on 21 July. Our discussion covered a range of topics, including business issues, tourism and the peace process.

On 13 July 2006, I met representatives of the Ulster Political Research Group. They outlined their proposal for a conflict transformation initiative in loyalist areas. The meeting was positive and focused. I welcome the ongoing efforts to bring about a genuine transformation in loyalism. The British Government recently approved funding for a pilot project to develop this initiative. I assured the group that the focus and priority of the Irish Government, whatever the outcome of the forthcoming talks, was the full implementation of the Good Friday Agreement.

With the exception of the better regulation unit, which currently has a contract with Goodbody economic consultants to provide economic support and advice to Departments in the preparation of regulatory impact analyses, my Department does not use economic advisers. A small team of consultants is assisting in a comprehensive study on the all-island economy which is being undertaken at the request of the British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference chaired by the Minister for Foreign Affairs and the Northern Ireland Secretary of State. That study is likely to be completed in October.

The question of further sessions of the Forum for Peace and Reconciliation will be kept under review. As of now, there are no plans for a further meeting.

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