Neale Richmond (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I absolutely agree with every single point Deputy Howlin made and I welcome the Minister's commitments and comments heretofore on this extremely worrying situation. Like the Minister, I agree that it is far more effective when EU countries work together. As we have heard in debates on other elements of these questions today, Ireland is a European and global leader, so perhaps when it comes to this issue we need to lead within the European Union. Quite simply, how do we know that a person extradited from Ireland to Hong Kong under the 2007 agreement will face trial there and that he or she will not all of a sudden end up in China? Can we trust that agreement and that system? Can we make sure we do not have another terrible situation such as we have with Robert O'Halloran, a case on which I know the Minister has worked so hard and with which he is very familiar?

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