Andrew Doyle (Wicklow, Fine Gael)

Deputy Timmins is my constituency colleague so I will desist from praising him, lest anyone should consider me guilty of favouritism. I have heard much praise from the Government benches tonight and to quote Marc Antony in Julius Caesar, "I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him". At least he was honest.

If we view the glass as half full, with regard to agreement on this Bill, we can say that we all see that cluster munitions are terrible things that create anguish, pain and suffering and do horrific damage. The issue is whether this Bill is premature, coming, as it does before the famous and welcome conference in Croke Park in May. I do not believe it is premature, it simply sets out to let the country make a statement, before it hosts a very important conference. We can state that we have taken concrete steps to ensure no financial gain shall accrue to any Irish citizen or the Irish Government from the trade in cluster munitions. We can also state that no money from this Government, or the people of this State, will be invested in the further development of this industry. This is the simple message behind this Bill.

People say that Ireland is only a small nation but I have heard Government spokespeople, particularly in the Green Party, speak of the power of one and the example we can set. What would be the harm of having this Bill in progress, if not enacted, by the time of the May conference? This Bill could be a statement of our intent and the serious view we take of this matter. Similar legislation exists in New Zealand.

Some €100 million of Irish money is invested in this industry, yet it has been suggested that this should not be reportable at the end of the year. I take issue with the Deputy who said we do not have to report. We have to report everything to the Standards in Public Office Commission at the end of each year. We must report that we are tax compliant, though we have heard enough about that issue through another matter that has gone on long enough in this House. It is incorrect to say we do not have to report — we do, and this is only right.

There are enough profitable companies in the world, including pension fund companies and banks, and if they cannot make a profit for investors without putting money in an industry that creates such mayhem and carnage, they are not fit to function.

Amnesty International made the point that there is no threat to Ireland's role as a UN peacekeeper. Contributions last night referred to a statutory instrument and amendments that would be made to this Bill on Committee Stage. The Bill deals in a straightforward way with the involvement of Irish money in the cluster munitions trade. It will allow Ireland to send a message that it wants no hand, act or part in the area, even if it is for financial gain.

Over the years I have seen demonstrations in Shannon and heard calls for bans on stopover flights. Many complicated issues have been thrown around because they were good for soundbites. Some people may consider this Bill boring and mundane but it is a concrete statement we can make so I commend it to the House.

Within nine months, after the Croke Park conference, the Government will move its own Bill, which will supersede and undermine this Bill. The Opposition has gone to some effort to bring forward a Bill that could win the agreement of the House; the sentiments of Government speakers so far indicate that this is possible. The Government should be magnanimous enough to embrace this Bill.

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