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

I have known Arlene Foster for many years. She is a woman I like and respect. I had the opportunity to be her counterpart for three and a half years when we were both responsible for tourism on the two different parts of the island and we worked very well together when the Good Friday Agreement was operating. I would say to any political party in Northern Ireland or, indeed, on these islands that we should all respect the Good Friday Agreement and we should all work as hard as we can to make sure those institutions are back up and running again, with the Assembly giving expression to the democratic will of people living in Northern Ireland, and an Executive so that decisions are made not by civil servants or politicians in London or not made at all, but are made in Stormont, Belfast, where they should be made. It would also mean we can get the North-South bodies up and running again. The bodies still operate but the North-South Ministerial Council does not, which is of great regret when we are talking about important projects ranging from the A5, which is important in connecting Derry and Donegal to Dublin and Leinster, to the North-South interconnector and all the issues that arise as a result of Brexit.

We could manage these issues much better if we had the institutions up and running. I call on everyone to respect the agreement and the decision of the people of Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland to embrace it and make it work.

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