Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I propose to take Questions Nos. 1 to 25, inclusive, together.

The questions relate to my visit to the USA and meeting with President Obama, with the exception of one question which relates to the Minister of State in my Department. As the House is aware, I travelled to the United States of America again this year for the St. Patrick's Day period. Every year, the St. Patrick's Day holiday provides the Government with a unique and invaluable opportunity to reach out to heads of state, senior politicians, business leaders, civic organisations and the media right across the globe to strengthen Ireland's international relations and enhance our profile and reputation as a location for trade, tourism and investment. It also gives us a unique opportunity to connect with and advocate on behalf of Irish people living abroad. My visit to the USA this year included a comprehensive programme of engagements from 16 to 22 March 2013. I had an extensive set of meetings and engagements with political, business and civil society representatives, which began in New York, continued in Washington DC and finished on the west coast in Los Angeles, silicon valley, San Francisco and Seattle. My programme for the visit included over 50 engagements, including bilateral meetings, formal speaking events and civic engagements.

In New York, I had a range of meetings focused on political, economic and cultural issues. I attended the traditional St. Patrick's Day mayor's breakfast with the city's political leaders, including Mayor Bloomberg and Speaker Christine Quinn. I also met with a range of Irish organisations based in New York, which are doing tremendous work on behalf of Irish people generally and, specifically, for the Irish living in New York. Nowhere was this better illustrated than in Breezy Point, which I had the privilege of visiting. This small community was left devastated last year following Hurricane Sandy. I met with the residents of Breezy Point, many of the heroes from the city services and with people in US and Irish organisations from across the city and beyond who joined in the relief effort. I commended all those involved in efforts to get the community back on its feet and expressed the support and solidarity of the Irish people. I note in particular the members of the GAA who did outstanding work during their appearances out there. I also had the opportunity to visit the 9/11 Memorial, where so many Irish citizens and people of Irish descent are commemorated, and to tour the primary building of the new World Trade Center complex, Freedom Tower.

In Washington, I had bilateral meetings with political leaders, including President Obama, Vice President Biden and Speaker Boehner. I also had meetings with Democrat and Republican members of the Senate and the House of Representatives, including Senators Leahy, Schumer and McCain and Congressmen King and Neal, who have long been to the forefront in dealing with policy issues of concern to the Irish Government. My discussions in Washington covered a number of issues of interest to the USA and to Ireland, including the prospects for negotiating a transatlantic trade and investment partnership, progress with Ireland's economic recovery, the current situation in Northern Ireland and, of course, the prospect for immigration reform and the resolution of the very difficult situation for the undocumented Irish living in the USA. In recent months, President Obama has clearly set out his intention and determination to achieve comprehensive immigration reform. During my discussions with both the President and Vice President Biden, they acknowledged the particular significance of this issue for Ireland and the Irish living in the USA. In all of my discussions on the issue with the President, the Vice President, Speaker Boehner and key figures in the debate, including Senators Leahy, Schumer and McCain, my message was that immigration reform needs to resolve the situation for the undocumented Irish living in the USA and to provide adequately for legal migration flows in the future through reciprocal arrangements between Ireland and the USA.

Another issue of keen interest to both political and business leaders in the USA was the question of a transatlantic trade and investment partnership. This was the key focus of my speech to the US Chamber of Commerce in Washington. I also had a very productive discussion about the issue with President Obama and we both expressed the hope that formal negotiations will begin before the end of Ireland's EU Presidency. The President and I are very clear that an agreement between the USA and Europe will bring significant benefits to both our economies and help set global standards. We also had a good discussion about progress in Northern Ireland. I briefed the President on the discussions I had recently had with Prime Minister Cameron. The President and I agreed that it is vital to continue to support the institutions of the Good Friday Agreement. I thanked the President for his ongoing support for the peace process.

On international issues, we discussed the situation in Syria. For my part, I briefed the President on the European Council meeting the previous week, which had considered both the security and the humanitarian dimensions of the problem in Syria. The President and I did not discuss the issue of Guantanamo nor the blockade of Gaza. I understand, however, that the wider Middle East peace process was the subject of discussions between the Tánaiste and US Secretary of State Kerry. Finally, we discussed the forthcoming G8 summit in very general terms only and I indicated that I looked forward to meeting the President again at that stage.

In Washington, I also met with Vice President Biden and we discussed a number of issues of mutual interest. I had the pleasure of presenting Vice President Biden with a certificate of Irish heritage, which documents his extensive Irish roots. The Vice President confirmed his desire and intention to visit Ireland. While we were in Washington, the Tánaiste and I also took the opportunity to meet jointly with Northern Ireland First Minister Peter Robinson and Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness to discuss recent developments in Northern Ireland. During my visit to Washington, I also participated in a number of other important events, including addressing a major business event organised by Enterprise Ireland, the IDA and Tourism Ireland. I delivered the Paul O'Dwyer memorial lecture, the theme of which was "making democracy work," at George Washington University. I also attended the American Ireland Fund's 21st national gala, where I acknowledged the tremendous work done by the fund in support of people and communities on all parts of this island. I note the debt of gratitude we owe to the work of our ambassador, Michael Collins, and his staff in Washington. The ambassador will take up a position in Berlin later in the year.

My engagements on the west coast included a series of meetings with US companies and with Irish companies operating in the USA. In silicon valley, I met with the chief executives of both Yahoo and McAfee and was delighted to announce the creation of 260 additional jobs for Cork and Dublin. I also met with Steven Spielberg and had very useful discussions with him on how Ireland can become a more attractive location for film making. The job-creation potential of the film production sector in Ireland is considerable and is an issue that the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Deputy Deenihan, is prioritising. On the west coast, I had an opportunity to engage with Irish emigrants and the Irish-American communities in San Francisco and Seattle as well those Irish working in the high-tech world of silicon valley. This was the first visit to Seattle by a serving Taoiseach and I had the pleasure of meeting a wonderful and dynamic Irish community there. Everywhere I travelled, the same sentiment was evident of tremendous goodwill towards Ireland and enthusiastic acknowledgement of our progress towards economic recovery.

I have also been asked if I have any plans to visit the United States again. I have recently returned from a brief visit to Boston and I have no further visits to the US scheduled at this stage.

I have also been asked to report to the House on the visits of the Chief Whip and the Attorney General during the St. Patrick's Day period. The Attorney General travelled to France for the St. Patrick's Day period and represented Ireland at a range of political, economic and cultural events. She spoke on behalf of the Irish Government at the St. Patrick's Day reception in the Irish Embassy in Paris. She also attended an event at the Irish Cultural Centre in Paris and rang the opening bell at the NYSE Euronext. She paid courtesy calls on the heads of two of France's most important legal institutions, the President of the Constitutional Council and the Vice-President of the Council of State. Finally, the Attorney represented the Irish Government at aifreann Lá le Pádraig in the Cathedral of Notre Dame. This was the first time in the 850 year history of the cathedral that a service was celebrated in the Irish language.

The Chief Whip represented the Government for Saint Patrick's Day in Australia and New Zealand. The Minister of State's visit took place from 8 to 17 March, where he travelled to six cities including Perth, Melbourne, Sydney, Canberra, Brisbane, and Auckland. The Chief Whip met senior political figures, including Australian Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, the Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, Mr. Brendan O'Connor, the Premier of Queensland, Mr. Campbell Newman, as well as federal MPs and senior parliamentarians in New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland. He also met with New Zealand Chief Whip Ms Louise Upston.

The Chief Whip's Programme included seven formal speaking engagements, including three keynote speeches on economic issues, two major community events and a reception hosted by the consulate and Tourism Ireland for business leaders and parliamentarians in New South Wales. He also had several media engagements and a number of meetings with the Irish community in Perth, Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Auckland.

Since the Government came into office, Ireland has seen significant progress in repairing its international reputation. St. Patrick's Day offers us a unique opportunity to promote Ireland on the global stage, from the small family celebrations in remote corners of the globe to the wonderful celebrations and parades in villages, towns and cities at home and abroad. All of this has a tremendously positive impact on Ireland's profile and reputation and, ultimately, on our ability to compete for tourism, investment and job creation opportunities. The roles played by our Ministers when they travel abroad, and by the staff of our diplomatic missions and overseas agencies who represent this country so professionally, are essential to Ireland's social and economic interests. I commend all those working so hard on behalf of the country.

See this speech in context