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

Last October I made a significant speech at Bodenstown on the issues in the peace process on the island. I warned that we were not reaping the full dividend of the Good Friday Agreement and that its potential was not being realised. As a former Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade and watching events unfold, I made the criticism – not by way of a cheap shot – that politics in the North was not working. As the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade said, there are deep underlying and profound reasons we are witnessing these street protests. That is not to excuse anything and I unequivocally condemn what is going on. Unfortunately, however, one has the terrible sense that politics has not moved on from the tired old scripts on parades, emblems and flags. I understand the importance and significance of symbolism in Northern Ireland. However, bread and butter issues have not been addressed by the Executive. Those on the ground in disadvantaged areas, both Nationalist and loyalist, have not reaped the dividends of the Good Friday Agreement. It seems a new effort and initiative are required to have a far more effective, anti-sectarian policy and drive.

The funds provided by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade have been effective in reconciling community groups in interface areas. Should there be a significant expansion of these funds? Should there be greater collaboration with the British Government and the Northern Executive to adopt a far more expansive approach to an anti-sectarian and cross-community reconciliation agenda? We also need to deal with critical issues such as the fact that the North still has the worst indices of child poverty, particularly in west Belfast, that school completion figures are low, particularly in loyalist areas, and that health indices are poor. There is a need for a fresh initiative on these fronts.

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