Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I am delighted to have the opportunity to respond to the statements so far. I have listened with interest to the debate and we must bear in mind that the agreement is entitled A Fresh Start. The agreement is not a final destination but represents a step forward towards normalising politics and society in Northern Ireland. I share the articulation of the disappointment on the issues around legacy.

As a result of where I am and where my generation is in relation to the legacy issues, we bear a certain responsibility for dealing with the past. Is it going to take another generation, or a generation beyond that? When I look at the pupils and students who are here as visitors today, I wonder whether we will have to wait for someone of their generation to finally crack the legacy issues and to deal with the past. Successive Irish Governments, regardless of their political persuasions, have sought to lean in towards the British Government on these issues in a forceful and genuine manner. If we are going to talk about it in a rhetorical way, it is important for all of us - from a party political point of view - to be honest with each other about just what that will mean in real terms. It will involve the British Government and people from other party political perspectives opening up the closets and seeing where the skeletons are, and if we are honest with ourselves, we will admit that it is incumbent on us all to look deeply at just what the issues of disclosure and national security mean. Are they used as mere words to protect entities against the letting in of the light?

There has been much mention in this Chamber of the campaign that is being run by U2. It would appear that many Members of this House have been at the U2 concerts that have taken place in recent days, at which there has been a particular articulation in relation to the Dublin and Monaghan bombings. I can say in good stead with a degree of integrity that this and previous Governments have consistently sought to ensure the mandate given by this House on the issue of disclosure in this regard is fulfilled. We will continue to do that. The agreement is incomplete if we always have to come back to the legacy issues and the need to deal with the past. It seems to be an iterative process on this island. I do not mean to be ageist when I say that my generation fails to understand why these issues cannot be surmounted. We need to deal with them assuredly. We need to ensure we speak for the victims. If we can get beyond these issues, we can achieve a greater degree of transparency.

When I talk to ordinary citizens in the Six Counties of the North, it does not appear to me that they are as engaged as they might be with the issues at Stormont. The constant cry I hear from ordinary people of all persuasions is "they need to get on with it up on the hill". That is what people seem to want. They want normal, normative politics and a real economy. Every Government needs to move towards assisting and facilitating that, and cajoling for it, in every possible way. As Minister of State with responsibility for North-South co-operation, I can say we have made a real commitment in the form of the additional £25 million that is being provided for the A5 project. It is important that we unlock the potential of the north west of this island. It could be argued that there is a disparity in growth and economic prosperity between the regions to the east and the west of the River Bann. We need to do more to unlock the potential of the north west, particularly the Donegal-Derry region. That is what we are working towards.

As a Minister of State with an economic Ministry, it is no harm for me to say on the record of this House that my colleagues and I recently visited the Bombardier facility in Belfast. Two companies from the South of Ireland - Dawnlough from Galway and Takumi from Limerick - are sub-supplying parts and components for the aerospace and aeronautical industry into Bombardier. That is the island or the Ireland that I want to see. I want big companies like Bombardier, which is a significant player in the global aerospace industry, to source their materials from as near as possible, and preferably on the island of Ireland. Such an approach will sustain jobs in the North and the South, sustain a real economy and really knit the two parts of this island together in the way that needs to happen. It will allow us to move beyond some of the empty rhetoric that is sometimes employed when we talk about the North, the South or North-South co-operation.

As I have said, we feel that this is an iterative process. We feel strongly that the legacy issue remains outstanding. We feel an obligation to the families, the victims and those people who want to deal with the past in a transparent way. We will continue to feel that way and I believe those who step into the breach long after people like me cease to inhabit positions of this nature will continue to do so. At what point do we ask ourselves certain questions? Do a certain number of generations have to pass while people seek justice before these matters are forgotten and written out of history? At what point in the next number of years can we get beyond this issue or deal with it in a substantive way? As long as it is not dealt with, it will continue to cast a shadow over everything we are doing to try to bring about the normalisation of society and, as has been said here, move towards a society that is beyond conflict.

I want to acknowledge the roles of the First Minister, Peter Robinson, and the Deputy First Minister, Martin McGuinness. I want to say in a personal way that they are tough negotiators and formidable politicians. I would say that when it came to hammering out a deal on real economy, the restoration of normal politics and the restoration of the institutions, they had the best interests of the people of the North at heart. There are still many flaws and issues that need to be dealt with, however. I am not going to critique people in another part of this island, in the context of my vision for a greater degree of traction on the issues that are still outstanding, other than to say that this deal offers the potential for realpolitikto reign supreme within the Stormont institution. It has to be recorded for historical purposes - I am thinking of the future historians who will parse through these debates - that the issue of welfare legislation will now pass to Westminster for this period. That is a fact.

I will conclude by responding to those who have spoken about sister parties. I have never witnessed a debate that featured so many references to Westminster, George Osborne and the Tories. To be honest, maybe it is time for us to look at the abstentionist policy.

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