Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)

Deputy McGrath was always a strong supporter of human rights and he has rightly raised questions here about the implications of activities by the Taliban, al-Qaeda and other groups. This regards EU support for sanctions against Iran because of the scale of its activities with regard to nuclear power. It is for that reason that the European Union, with the Tánaiste acting on behalf of the Irish Government, supports the sanctions being imposed on Iran in this case.

Reports from this morning - I have not heard reports from the last hour or so - indicated there was not much of a reaction because of the protection that exists in respect of the Strait of Hormuz by an American fleet and others. If this sanction regime continued for an extended period, with a drop in oil supplies, prices would rise not just in Ireland but everywhere else. This is a serious matter of an expansion in a nuclear programme by Iran, and sanctions have been extended against that country as a result. The European Union strongly supports that. I hope there will not be any catastrophic consequences in that region, and oil is important to the economies in western Europe and other countries. For that reason there is a belief that there is sufficient capacity to ensure that the straits are kept opened for traffic to countries in the West, including this country.

See this speech in context