Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I propose to take Questions Nos. 1 to 23, inclusive, together, as they relate to the Stormont House Agreement, and the remaining questions are different.

I recall that when I answered questions on Northern Ireland in October last, the British and Irish Governments had just confirmed their intention to convene all-party talks. Since then the political landscape in Northern Ireland has changed significantly and for the better.

The successful conclusion of the Stormont House Agreement on 23 December 2014 represented the culmination of many months of negotiation and behind the scenes diplomacy, but also a prolonged period of close relationship building. I am pleased that the Government and I, working closely with our British counterparts, and, of course, with the Northern Ireland parties, have played an important role in helping to broker this agreement. The negotiations involved a huge commitment from both governments, the First and Deputy First Minister and all the parties concerned. The Prime Minister and I maintained close contact regarding Northern Ireland over this time, including in particular our joint visit to Stormont on 11 and 12 December in an effort to finalise the talks process. I believe that our direct involvement in the talks at that time helped to move them forward and laid a firm platform for the agreement ultimately reached on 23 December. I met Prime Minister Cameron most recently at the EU Council meetings in December and last week but I did not have an opportunity to discuss Northern Ireland issues in detail with him on those occasions.

I outlined in January's Dáil debate on Northern Ireland the detailed provisions of the Stormont House Agreement. Briefly, the agreement covers a broad range of political, social and economic issues. It sets out a plan for financial and budgetary reform. It proposes a way forward on flags, identity, culture and tradition through the establishment of a commission, envisages the devolution of responsibility for parades to the Northern Ireland Assembly, establishes a programme of institutional reform at Stormont and progresses a number of outstanding aspects from the Good Friday and St. Andrews Agreements. Significantly, it establishes a new comprehensive framework for dealing with the legacy of the past.

In the context of the agreement, the Government undertook a number of commitments which will be an important focus of our work in the period ahead. These include the drafting of legislation where necessary in relation to the establishment of new institutions for dealing with the legacy of the past. In particular, legislation will be required to establish an independent commission on information retrieval, which will enable victims and survivors to seek and receive information about the death of their loved ones. The Government committed to a number of measures that will contribute to economic renewal in Northern Ireland as well as being beneficial to the all-island economy. These include Stg£50 million in financial support to complete the A5 road project in the north west and a commitment to further progress the north west gateway initiative.

In the period ahead, we will continue to advance political progress and to play our part in the implementation of the Stormont House Agreement. To this end, the Minister for Foreign Affairs and the Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs, Deputy Sherlock, attended the first quarterly review meeting on 30 January which agreed a comprehensive implementation plan for all provisions of the agreement. As part of the ongoing contacts between the two Governments regarding the implementation of the agreement, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Ms Theresa Villiers MP, met the Minister in Dublin last week, which was an opportunity for both Governments to review progress on the implementation of the agreement. The meeting also gave the Minister the opportunity to discuss a broader range of issues with the Secretary of State, including the justice and security situation in Northern Ireland and a number of specific legacy cases.

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