Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

An-mhaith. Like Deputy Adams, everyone in this House and everyone in Ireland who watched the news on Sunday was horrified at the scenes we saw broadcast from Barcelona and Girona and to see that level of violence happening in what is a European country that has been a democracy since the 1970s. As I said on Monday, violence is never the solution to political disagreements. Violence by state actors, whether it is the police or the army, against unarmed civilians is disproportionate and should not have happened. It is also counterproductive. We know from our own history in this country and from history around the world that when policemen and soldiers use violence against unarmed civilians, it is counterproductive. It causes people to become more radicalised, causes greater nationalism and greater disunity. I hope the Spanish Government will reflect on the historical experiences of many countries in the world when it considers its next course of action into the future.

I absolutely agree with the Deputy that dialogue is the right way forward and that is what I would like to see occur in Spain. If I have the opportunity to say that to the Spanish Prime Minister in the weeks ahead, I will certainly take that opportunity.

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