Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)

I hope Deputy Timmins would leave me time to give the first reply.

A unit, with staff, in my Department deals specifically with the conflict resolution agenda and policy. It is important that it is integrated into the Department of Foreign Affairs. There is a strong engagement with the Irish Aid section, for example, because there is attendant conflict in many areas of poverty. Conflict is a significant cause of much of the poverty in many countries and there is a relationship with Irish Aid. There is also a relationship with the Anglo-Irish unit in the Department because of the experience of Northern Ireland.

The worst possible approach would be to set up an isolated centre. We are formulating and evolving policy. That is where the conflict resolution unit sits. It is important that it integrates with wider elements of the Department and that the Department has an holistic overarching engagement with conflict resolution. This would ensure that any person in any mission could at any stage be brought into this endeavour if it is applicable.

I am not in favour of a specific academic centre. I have made this clear, both to the unit and to universities, because we have much existing expertise out there. For example, some universities — we have funded this through Irish Aid already — have good relationships with international organisations on crop production, agricultural techniques, etc. UCG and UCC, for example, have good capacities in humanitarian law. Why exclude all of those from engagement here?

The model I would prefer would be a consortium of the colleges that we already have, involving a utilisation of existing disciplines——

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