Marian Harkin (Sligo-Leitrim, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Perhaps not. I will speak for a while and give the Minister a chance to answer.

I congratulate the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade on retaining his portfolio. I also congratulate our new Minister of State, Deputy Brophy. Seeing as more congratulations are in order, I will get them out of the way at the beginning. I congratulate those involved in Ireland's success in securing a seat at the United Nations Security Council for the next two years. I am pleased to see that the Revised Estimates increase our resources for civil society and human rights defenders at the United Nations. We will certainly raise issues of concern around human rights; lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex issues; gender equality; and women's political participation in post-conflict reconciliation and disarmament. At the end of Ireland's term, we all want to be able to point to our role in ensuring positive outcomes, especially in the area of human rights.

One section in the Revised Estimates refers to advancing Ireland's interests in negotiations of European Union legislation and other decisions. I was watching to the Minister's contribution on the big screen downstairs and he specifically mentioned the German Presidency and its priorities. He also mentioned working with the European Commission on negotiating the multi-annual financial framework. This makes my point, as the Minister did not mention the European Parliament. Like me, he is a former member of the European Parliament. I acknowledge and applaud the work of the previous Government in engaging with MEPs and briefing them very often on big-ticket items. However, we need a change in our mindset, or we certainly need a tweak. Very often the European Parliament is seen to be of lesser importance. The Minister served as an MEP and he knows that the legislative framework is like a three-legged stool comprising the European Council, the European Commission and the European Parliament. He knows that any strong rapporteur leading for the European Parliament - I see myself as having been one of them - can have a real influence on the detail and minutiae of European legislation. It is not the headline stuff or the big-ticket items like the figures for the Common Agricultural Policy or the European Social Fund but rather the detail on how the budget is spend, whether it is the Common Agricultural Policy, the European Social Fund or the microfinance fund we discussed this week. This is often what makes a significant difference for citizens. I request greater co-operation where it is possible, although MEPs must be open to it. There should be greater co-operation between Irish institutions and Irish MEPs in the real work of the European Parliament, including amending and improving legislation.

In the context of North-South co-operation, I refer to a programme that was put in place under the peace and reconciliation heading. I have no interest in this because I was not a member but an important initiative was set up where members of local authorities, North and South, could meet informally in a series of structured events to discuss common objectives. In 2013, our current Taoiseach, Deputy Micheál Martin, stated at the Merriman School that in the North and South there are two societies that are growing apart but there is nothing inevitable about this. He said there are many areas where a community of interests is clear and where the opportunities for action are at hand. In that context, I want the Minister to reconsider the discontinued initiative I mentioned. It had a focus on building personal relationships in matters of common interest bit by bit and step by step. The Minister and I know that those kinds of relationships are often far more secure and long-lasting.

I have a question that was already posed by Deputy Howlin but the Minister did not have time to answer it. Perhaps he can do so now. I refer to our extradition treaty with Hong Kong. As Deputy Howlin mentioned, Australia has revoked its treaty with Hong Kong. I know this is a delicate matter, and I am not asking for anything definitive, but I would like to hear the Minister's views, as every one of us in the House knows the situation in Hong Kong is slowly deteriorating.

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