Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I do not know how many times I have to say it but people do not seem to want to hear . The reason I have opposed as Minister the introduction of the occupied territories Bill is I have clear legal advice from the previous Attorney General, which I believe to be very credible, that we cannot enforce or implement it. People just do not want to accept that, as if to say the legal advice from the Office of the Attorney General is not valid because there is some other legal advice from somebody else somewhere that says otherwise. As a Minister, I have to respect and act on the legal advice the Government has available to it. It is the State's legal advice. This is not some kind of strategic opposition from me to legislation.

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