Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE) | Oireachtas source

The UK Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, has been one of the leading international figures who is beating the drums of war and aggression with Russia and who is calling for further NATO expansion. As Deputy Boyd Barrett mentioned, yesterday, 15 February, was the 19th anniversary of the day on which more than 100,000 people marched on the streets of Dublin in 2003. This was part of global protests by tens of millions of people who were opposition to war. Nearly two decades later, we can see clearly that those of us who marched we were in the right, and how wrong all of the spin and the propaganda about weapons of mass destruction, etc., really was.

What is the Government doing now in the context of the drums of war being beaten once more? It has been presented with a report that is calling for a massive expansion in spending on the military. A tripling of such expenditure is called for in one scenario - this is the supposed middle-ground scenario - and an increased of 50% is called for in another. What other Department would get an increase of 50% in funding? That is €500 million more to be spent on warships or missiles. That amount would be sufficient to fund the introduction of free public transport right across the country. There are 44 references to NATO in the report in question. Should we not be prioritising welfare over warfare? Can the Taoiseach tell Johnson that we are not joining NATO?

See this speech in context