Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

Earlier the Taoiseach used words such as unhelpful or uncomfortable to describe some of the language used by presidential candidates during the election campaign in terms of immigrants in the United States. Do we need to be a little bit more forthright in roundly condemning the language of one particular candidate, Mr. Donald Trump, who has been condemned by governments, civil rights organisations and human rights organisations for using what can only be described as utterly despicable and racist language? He accused Mexico of exporting its rapists and criminals to the United States. What is very relevant to the undocumented Irish is that he has called for the expulsion of all 11.3 million undocumented workers in the United States. This is the same Donald Trump whom the Minister, Deputy Michael Noonan, met in Shannon Airport in May 2014 with a red carpet, harps and people in traditional Irish dress in what was frankly even at the time quite a ludicrous show of deference to this multibillionaire. This same person now turns out to be somebody who is literally whipping up an outrageous and dangerous hysteria against the undocumented, who include the Irish undocumented. Do we regret rolling out the red carpet for a man who would say this about immigrants in the United States? Will we condemn what he is saying? He will hear those words given his investment in this country. It will be something he will hear if the Irish Taoiseach and political system condemn him utterly for the words he has used to describe undocumented immigrants in the United States from wherever they may come. I ask the Taoiseach to respond to this and make this forthright condemnation when somebody is being racist, and that is what he is. He is whipping up dangerous hysteria, whereby there are serious reports of immigrants actually suffering heightened levels of violence, threats and racist stereotyping specifically because of the language and rhetoric Donald Trump has used. It is emboldening the worst and most racist elements in the United States to attack, physically in some cases, target, vilify and demonise undocumented immigrants. This is mostly directed at Mexicans, but he has said he wants to expel all undocumented workers from the United States.

In the context of the refugee crisis, and particularly the situation in Syria and how it has been one of the major centres from which these refugees are fleeing, did the Taoiseach, as we asked him to on a number of occasions earlier this year, raise criticism, questions and concerns about the role of the United States in creating the conditions for this refugee crisis through its actions in Iraq, support for Saudi Arabia and arming of these regimes which have then gone on in turn to finance, support, give succour and create the conditions for the rise of ISIS? Somebody has to start saying this stuff because the consequences have been so devastating.

The Taoiseach mentioned his attendance at the UN meeting in New York. I have heard an unconfirmed report, and I would like a straight and direct answer. Did the Taoiseach meet, or have any engagement with, General al-Sisi, the president and dictator - there is no other word to use for this man - of Egypt?

Did the Taoiseach or any of his officials or representatives of the Irish State or political system meet President el-Sisi, the man who is engaging in mass executions and mass trials of his own citizens, as well as Ibrahim Halawa? If they did, was the Halawa case raised? His trial has been deferred yet again, and he has been incarcerated for two years in prison.

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