Aodhán Ó Ríordáin (Dublin North Central, Labour) | Oireachtas source

This crisis will not be solved today, tomorrow, next week or next month. It will be with us for quite a long time.

I thank Deputies for their comments and questions. I am pleased to have the opportunity to wrap up the debate on the outcome of the October European Council and touch on some of the issues on the agenda, including some that the Taoiseach did not have time to cover.

Many of the contributions focused on the migration crisis, or the refugee crisis, as it should be more appropriately termed. It is an issue of major concern to everybody in this House and in Ireland. I reiterate a point made by the Taoiseach, namely, that we want see a comprehensive EU response based on solidarity which balances a compassionate approach with practical measures. I am pleased to say that Ireland is playing a full part in this response. In addition to our humanitarian assistance, development aid and the provision of naval vessels for search-and-rescue efforts in the Mediterranean, the Government agreed on 10 September to establish an Irish refugee protection programme and to accept up to 4,000 refugees and asylum seekers overall under the EU resettlement and relocation programme.

This will not come at any cost to the ongoing issue of addressing the direct provision scandal in Ireland. Anybody living within those centres should not be under the impression that they will be at a disadvantage because of our humanitarian response to the refugee crisis. The report of the direct provision working group is being implemented.

A new cross-departmental task force is being established and is working with NGOs, religious bodies, local authorities and the Red Cross to deal with the operational and logistical aspects of the support programme. A network of emergency reception and orientation centres is being established for the initial reception of asylum seekers arriving under the relocation programmes. The Government is also engaging with the public on their generous pledges of support and has tasked the Red Cross with drawing the offers together. A website has been launched to enable members of the public to formally register their pledges.

I will move on to a different international issue which the Taoiseach did not have time to touch on. The European Council took note of the publication of the official Dutch report on the downing of Malaysian Airlines flight airline flight MH17 over Ukraine. While there was no detailed discussion at the European Council, Ireland underlined the conclusion to reiterate the EU's commitment to hold to account those responsible for this appalling tragedy. The situation in Ukraine remains one of concern, although there have been signs of some stabilisation recently. While this is to be welcomed, Ireland's position is that all parties must adhere to the terms of the agreement set out in Minsk if there is to be meaningful progress in addressing the conflict.

Turning to climate change, the French President updated his colleagues on the conference that will start in Paris on 30 November, bringing together the international community to agree new and enhanced commitments to address climate change. The EU has already set out an ambitious position in advance of this conference, which is known as COP 21. Ireland strongly supports an ambitious, legally binding and global agreement with broad participation as the core outcome of the Paris COP. As part of the EU, Ireland is committed to playing its part in reaching that historic agreement. I note budget 2015 includes a contribution of €2 million to the green climate fund, which represents the first step in Ireland's longer-term financial engagement. This is in addition to our Irish Aid activities which involve working closely with developing partner countries on resilience to climate change and to which we contributed some €33 million last year.

I thank Deputies for their questions and contributions and for the attention of the Acting Chairman.

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