Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)

We talked about the Assembly elections in Northern Ireland and the fact that the Government would continue to work with the newly elected Assembly and the British Government in taking advantage of cross-Border opportunities. As the Deputy is aware, the Government is committed to following through on promises made by the previous Government in a number of cross-Border areas. The first North-South Ministerial Council meeting between the new Executive and the new Government will be held on 10 June when we hope to pursue a number of these issues.

What I did mention to the President was the requirement for funding under the International Fund for Ireland to continue. He specifically mentioned that his own Administration had included it in the budget. Senator Leahy, chairman of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations and Related Programs, has this in view and I hope it will continue. I made the point that for vulnerable communities on both sides in Northern Ireland, this kind of investment was important, particularly to prevent young men, as the Deputy is well aware, from regressing towards violence and criminality. We discussed the matter in general. The President has been very supportive and says he will continue to be so in this regard.

We did not discuss the question of the Dublin and Monaghan bombings.

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