Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

In the course of this debate many speakers have looked back over 15 years and recognised the great achievement that was the Good Friday Agreement. They have acknowledged the efforts and achievements of Irish political leaders and I wish to reiterate that. I wish to recognise in a particular way the friends of Ireland, especially in the United States of America, who have supported and facilitated the process. In truth, there would have been no peace agreement without them. Often, people outside Ireland showed far more vision and courage than many at home were prepared to show and I wish to acknowledge that as well.

As others have noted, the Good Friday Agreement and the Irish peace process are beacons for other parts of the world. They represent a framework of institutions based on equality, power-sharing and democratic principles. Naturally, the Agreement is not an end point but a means by which to deliver peaceful change. As we know, it removed the British Government veto on change, proving that the North of Ireland is not and never was as British as Finchley. It provides for a Border poll. In the final analysis it will be up to the people North and South in this country to determine the future shape of our nation. Yesterday evening I was in Crossmaglen with a panel of speakers at a packed meeting where people from across south Armagh and north Louth enthusiastically and energetically debated the issue of a Border poll and the future Ireland they wished to see for their children.

The two governments are equal co-guarantors of the Agreement. In the first instance it is for them to ensure compliance with and implementation of the Agreement. Like previous administrations, this Government must resist the temptation or instinct to take a back seat to the British Government. To date the actions of the British Government have amounted to stepping outside and undermining crucial elements of the Agreement. For example, it resisted the agreement at Weston Park for a full public inquiry into the killing of Pat Finucane. It has cut budgets and undermined institutions in the North. It has failed to legislate for Acht na Gaeilge. It has set aside financial agreements entered into at St. Andrews for an £18 billion financial package. It has cut the block grant by £4 billion. Now it is seeking to cut a further £1 billion from welfare benefits. Meanwhile it has rejected the joint call by all parties in the North for greater fiscal powers. Therefore, in the mind of the British Administration the Northern economy is to fend for itself, grow, develop and provide opportunity, essentially with one arm tied behind its back. The Irish Government should intervene on this issue. It is not good enough to sit back and observe cutbacks and hardship in the North. The Irish Government should call it as it is and make the case clearly that for the North to flourish and for the country to flourish, fiscal powers must be repatriated to Stormont and those powers must reside with elected Irish leaders.

The actions of this British Government have not only undermined the Agreement and the institutions but frequently the standing of the Irish Government as well. It has often provided cover for those opposed to the agreements. Let us be clear about it in case there is any doubt: Sinn Féin has always delivered on agreements. We want to see the full implementation of all of the outstanding issues and we stand squarely against inequality and sectarianism and for inclusion, equality and respect. We also support absolutely the need for truth and reconciliation and we recognise that this cannot be a one-sided discussion. We have supported and will continue to campaign for the establishment of an international independent truth recovery process and we encourage everyone to play a full part in such a process.

The Agreement belongs to all our people and the current Government is a custodian of it.

The Fianna Fáil amendment to our motion is threadbare and minimalist, raising a question mark over Fianna Fáil's understanding not just of the progress we have made in the North, but the challenges that face us. The Government's amendment, by contrast, provides a constructive consensus on dealing with issues as we move forward. We can only judge the bona fides of that by the actions our colleagues across the floor will take. We note, despite a welcome reference to co-operation in the framework for economic recovery, that there is a studied absence of reference to the peace dividend and the financial package agreed at St. Andrews. I encourage the Government to be proactive on that matter.

I commend the Minister of State, Deputy Kelly, on being the first Minister or Minister of State to lay a wreath at the Cenotaph in Belfast. Clearly that was an important moment for him. In the same spirit, as the Taxi Regulation Bill is considered, I ask the Minister of State to look again at the issue of qualifying prisoners under the Good Friday Agreement. If his analysis is that the conflict is over and we are to move forward collectively and in a spirit of co-operation, why he would facilitate discrimination against that group of men and women? I ask him to reconsider that.

We also call on the Government to work with the British Government and all of the parties to re-energise the peace and political processes. Fifteen years is a long time to some but in truth it is the blink of an eye, an historical heartbeat. There is a danger, however, 15 years on that people can become complacent or even detached from the process unfolding just up the road. The Government does not have that luxury; this is too important. We stand ready to work in co-operation and with goodwill with all parties across the Dáil and with every political party in the country to ensure hope and history continue to rhyme and that we have full delivery of the agreements and their political potential.

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