Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I asked the Taoiseach this question earlier. I apologise for asking it again as I did not hear his answer. I asked him whether he has planned a White Paper. He knows that the British Government will trigger Article 50 in a few short weeks and that Prime Minister May's White Paper gives us some sense of the degree of impact her decision will have on all the people of this island. I welcome Friday's civic dialogue plenary session. The process has been very good, although I am disappointed by the cancellation of meetings in Northern Ireland. In particular, the sectoral meetings have been very helpful. Last week, the Taoiseach indicated in the context of the Assembly elections that he was concerned that holding sectoral meetings in Northern Ireland might leave the Government open to the accusation of interfering in the electoral process, but people in Northern Ireland read and listen to reports of what is happening in this State. Nonetheless the election will be over so is it the Taoiseach's intention to hold sectoral meetings following the election? I also want to ask the Taoiseach about a report in the media that the Government is looking at possible sites for customs posts along the Border. Can the Taoiseach confirm or deny that?

I want to raise briefly the case of Ibrahim Halawa. Yesterday, his trial was delayed once again. He has now been in prison for over three years. Can the Taoiseach give us an update? A total of 400 migrant deaths have been recorded in the Mediterranean since January 2017. That is a huge amount of human beings. Over 5,000 people died in the Mediterranean last year. The Malta summit saw agreement on long-term co-operation measures with Libya and neighbouring countries but thousands of refugees are being held in Libya. Has the Taoiseach raised concerns about this humanitarian crisis with our European partners?

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