Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Tánaiste for his reply. It is time to demand that the British Government agree to the Tánaiste's request and that of the Government to have a meeting of the British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference. Even without the political impasse in Northern Ireland, there would be a huge argument for reconvening the British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference. In the face of no functioning political institutions in Northern Ireland and the growing confusion and concern about the impact that Brexit will have on our daily lives, it is an urgent requirement. Why is the British Government resisting the call? I accept the word that the Tánaiste and his Government colleagues have sought a meeting of the British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference. There seems to be no urgency in getting the talks resumed. The talks process is barely moving, if it is moving at all. In the absence of any meaningful dialogue between the parties to restore devolution, it is critical that the two Governments step up and step in.

I am in Northern Ireland every week. I travel through parts of it to visit parts of my own constituency. No later than last Saturday evening, in Enniskillen, I was speaking to people from counties Fermanagh, Tyrone and Down. They asked what was happening with regard to the political institutions in Northern Ireland. I said they needed to speak to the parties that they voted for as well as speaking to the political parties and Government here. People believe that there is no sense of urgency in getting the institutions back up and running. History shows that, at different times when there were impasses, it took the intervention and full engagement of both Governments-----

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