Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

It was announced earlier this week that the joint committee on the protocol will be convened in the coming weeks. We have been calling for this for many months and I welcome it as a positive development. As I have outlined many times, the protocol is needed to prevent a hard border on our island and to protect the Good Friday Agreement and the peace process. Where there are issues that remain to be ironed out, political leaders have a responsibility to resolve these through dialogue, and I welcome that the joint committee will be a vital avenue for this dialogue. It is now up to political leaders to engage with the committee in good faith to produce solutions that deliver for communities and businesses impacted particularly in the North. The vast majority of people in the North backed the protocol and want to see workable solutions, not brinkmanship or bluster from the Brexiteers. Those who recklessly advocate for the triggering of Article 16 must not be entertained. Will the Taoiseach set out the steps he is taking at European level to make it clear to our European neighbours that the people of the North support the protocol and want workable solutions, and to make it clear that the joint committee must be engaged with in good faith and cannot be another talking shop for Brexiteers to ramp up rhetoric at the expense of people in the North? What steps have been taken to ensure this committee will meet soon and that this positive momentum - I hope it is positive momentum - can be built on?

In addition, the cost-of-living crisis is clear to see. As I raised with the Taoiseach earlier, workers and families across the State feel the pinch from all angles. Rent, childcare costs, energy costs and food costs have skyrocketed. Figures show that prices went up by 5.4% in the year to November 2021, which was the largest annual change in prices in more than 20 years. People's pay packets simply cannot keep up. As we know, energy bills are astronomical. Despite this crisis, the Government has failed to act sufficiently. When it should have taken decisive action to give workers and families a break, it has dithered. When it has acted, it has been very little, very late.

Before the Taoiseach went to Brussels, I asked him to raise the cost-of-living crisis with our European colleagues to ensure we can work together to provide solutions for hard-pressed families. Many of our European neighbours have taken bold steps to stand up for their citizens in response to this crisis. It is clear that solutions are available where there is a will and where political leadership is evident. What steps has the Taoiseach taken at European level to address the cost-of-living crisis and to stand up for ordinary workers and families who now struggle to keep the lights on and pay their bills? People need to know what solutions he is putting forward for people who need a break. We also need to know what actions are envisaged at European level in a co-ordinated way in the search for these solutions.

In recent weeks, the international community has witnessed a dangerous escalation of military presence by Russia along the Ukrainian border. This is a dangerous situation with a growing potential for conflict in the region. There must be zero tolerance for any form of threat by larger and powerful states against their smaller neighbours. Respect for the territorial integrity of Ukraine and its international borders is non-negotiable. It is for the people of Ukraine to decide democratically their destiny without impediment or coercion, without threat or aggression. It is, therefore, imperative that Ireland plays its part to see a de-escalation and a peaceful and democratic resolution of this crisis. In that spirit, I ask that the multilateral apparatus, in particular, the United Nations and all of that capacity, is deployed in full and effectively to bring about a peaceful and democratic outcome. I anticipate and hope that, as a member of the Security Council, Ireland will play its full part in making that a reality.

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