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

I welcome the fact that the Minister will meet the Secretary of State next Monday on this very important issue. He said he would be in touch with the political parties. Can I assume there are no arrangements, at this stage, for the Minister and the British Secretary of State to have a formal engagement with the political parties represented in Stormont? It is important to send a clear message to all the people on this island and in Britain that we will not tolerate any abandonment or unpicking of any element of the Good Friday Agreement, as has been suggested by a political leader in recent days. The international agreement came about as a result of an agreement between two sovereign governments. It had multiparty support and was lodged with the United Nations. We need the implementation of all aspects of the Good Friday Agreement. Does the Minister believe urgency is being accorded to the issue of these talks by either the political parties in Northern Ireland or the British Government?

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