Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)

I join with other voices in once again unreservedly condemning the appalling and brutal murder of Paul Quinn. I wish to make it abundantly clear that this House is of one voice on this matter. There can be no question on that matter. I join in the repeated calls for those with information to co-operate with the respective police services North and South to ensure those responsible are brought to justice. With the forbearance of the Ceann Comhairle I wish to say there can be no doubt where Sinn Féin stands on this matter, irrespective of the views held at any time by those who will hopefully one day be proven to have been involved. These views are irrelevant and it was an act of criminal brutality that must be condemned outright. There can be tolerance, no ifs or buts whatsoever, and this is the position of all elected Sinn Féin voices and our party activists throughout the country.

I add one point of difference. I note a tendency on the part of some to determine responsibility. I caution Members against jumping to conclusions. The family has a view, as do others who are articulating their view ad nauseam. It is only through the respective police authorities North and South that the truth and the full rigours of the law can be brought to bear on the event. It saddens me that we are addressing such a brutal event on the cusp of Christmas.

Regarding the important elements of the Good Friday Agreement that have yet to come to pass, what progress has been made on the all-Ireland parliamentary forum, the consultative civic forum and the framing of the all-Ireland charter of rights? Has the Taoiseach discussed them in the most recent meeting with the British Prime Minister, Gordon Brown?

Has the Taoiseach addressed the matter of collusion with Gordon Brown, specifically the murders of Pat Finucane, Rosemary Nelson and the extensive list of victims of the bombings in this city and in my home town, Monaghan, on 17 May 1974? Has the Taoiseach sought to progress with the new British Prime Minister the need for a full proper cross-jurisdictional inquiry into all of these and whether the British Government will be fully compliant with the effort to establish the full truth and the extent of collusion as regards those terrible events, of which there are a number greater than those I have mentioned? Can the Taoiseach give the House an indication as to where matters stand and what progress he hopes to make in the coming year?

See this speech in context