Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I put it to the Taoiseach that, in reality, the events of the past few months have reinforced the fact that we can take nothing for granted in regard to the situation in Northern Ireland and building peace and reconciliation on the island of Ireland. There is a clear sense of drift in the engagement on the North with the London and Dublin Governments.

Particularly on the North-South strand, one gets the sense that there is little more than just going through the formalities of that relationship. That is partly the issue here and illustrates the degree to which, as recent events have proven, we have to remain actively involved. We must remain actively involved because things can go very wrong very quickly. During the violence that broke out in north Belfast, 45 PSNI members were treated in hospital. It was quite a significant disturbance.

The issue of parades is very important and in my view, both sides have played around with the Parades Commission. The British Government deserves to be censured or criticised for allowing the previous commission to lose credibility. They ran it down, essentially, if the truth be told. With the agreement on the devolution of justice, a new dispensation was promised. In fact, DUP and Sinn Féin representatives committed to a new order in terms of the organisation and regulation of parades and to engaging in a proactive way. However, that seems to have fallen down. One gets the feeling we are reverting to the kind of situations we experienced in the previous decade with Drumcree. We want to avoid all of that if at all possible, and there is an onus on everybody to get involved.

Has the Taoiseach received detailed reports from our people in the diplomatic service and on the ground regarding the dynamic of what is happening now in north Belfast? What does the Irish Government intend to do, with the Secretary of State and the British Government, to support the communities and the political parties in developing a new framework which would avoid the unacceptable behaviour that was witnessed in north Belfast in recent times? In that context, the parades issue is extremely important.

I welcome the fact that the Taoiseach met a delegation to discuss the Kingsmill massacre. That was an extraordinarily vicious and horrific crime, sectarian in intent and in execution, which ranks among any of the atrocities, of which there were many, in the North. There is a need for transparency concerning that particular incident and for some attempt to proactively respond to the families of those who were murdered. The Provisional movement and Sinn Féin have a role to play in that and should take a proactive lead in responding to their concerns, because their anger, sadness and sense of loss is still very raw. By any yardstick, this was a heinous crime that stands out in terms of its brutality and sectarian intention.

I met the Ballymurphy residents on a number of occasions when I was Minister for Foreign Affairs. The Taoiseach has been asked on a number of occasions to meet them and I think he should do so. He has not been able to meet them in Belfast to date but their offer to come to Dublin to meet him should be availed of because it would be useful for him to meet them in advance of his meeting with the Secretary of State, Theresa Villiers, MP. However, I do not think he should meet them just for the sake of it. When I met them I came away - having also spoken to Sinn Féin representatives and others - with no clear sense of where the issue was heading. I am a great believer in having someone come up with an approach that will meet the needs of the families. That was an appalling massacre. The British Government has concerns regarding another Bloody Sunday-type inquiry but there are other ways to get a quick, objective assessment of that situation, perhaps by using an international grouping at the outset to do a scoping review of it and give an initial assessment. I have put that idea forward in the past but there may be differences of opinion among those concerned as to the best way forward. None the less, there is no point in just going on and on with meetings unless we have a pathway out of this that will achieve closure for those involved. That is extremely important.

The key issue arising from the events of the last few months is the need for dialogue. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív has been very active in representing the prisoners in Maghaberry Prison; the issue there is that the regime is out of step with what has occurred in recent times in the North. The danger is that a situation will develop there that will become a catalyst for activities on the streets and outside the prison that do not need to happen. From my understanding of it, the issues at play can be resolved if there is political will on the part of the Executive, in whose hands the responsibility lies, given that the devolution of justice has now occurred. Informed interventions can prevent this from getting out of control.

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