James O'Connor (Cork East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

As the youngest Member of the House and the first to be elected to the Dáil whose lifetime has only known peace under the Good Friday Agreement, I wish to discuss the need to ensure that we create a shared island that is inclusive and tolerant of all people on it. When we move towards a shared island, we must continue to engage in open dialogue with all of the people on it to ensure that every person's voice is heard. We do not want to end up with a situation where sections of society feel abandoned or excluded. This is an important consideration.

I welcome the continued use of the all-island civic dialogue as a forum for addressing British-Irish related issues. The concern that the invoking of Article 16 has caused in Northern Ireland is a serious problem. The protocol must work, and be seen to work, for Northern Ireland's people and businesses. Brexit is a shared problem for this island and we can overcome the worst of its effects by working together.

I am a great believer in building economic ties through shared business networks and capital infrastructure projects. Yesterday at the transport committee, I raised the potential for Ireland to engage with our British counterparts following Britain's proposal to construct a tunnel between Northern Ireland and Great Britain. It would be an excellent way of continuing to build North-South and east-west relations. It is through such open dialogue and shared economic interests that we can continue to strengthen economic relationships across the islands.

We must expand and develop mechanisms for engagement between the Houses of the Oireachtas, the Northern Ireland Assembly, the UK Parliament and the devolved assemblies in Wales and Scotland. It was a great honour to take part in the British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly on Monday.

We must continue to ensure that each Department maintains strong links with its Northern Ireland counterpart and that the Northern Ireland Assembly continues to work effectively. It is only through working together and showing the positive benefits of doing so that we can hope to move together towards a stronger relationship on the island.

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