Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I am opposed to illegal unilateral action. That is why I was very interested when the Minister spoke about security co-operation. In that regard, there are Irish citizens who are waiting eight years for a trial in the northern part of this island. In the Minister's discussions on security co-operation, did he speak to the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland about the total unacceptability of people anywhere having to wait eight years for a trial? Has he raised with him the fact that the security police in Northern Ireland are under Westminster and not under the local authority? If one asks the Minister for Justice there, she will say that security issues are above her pay grade. This has resulted in an inordinate amount of stop and search, people who are tagged and out on bail being searched, woken up in the middle of the night and so forth. I am interested to hear how the Minister's security co-operation discussions have been proceeding.

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