Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I propose to take Questions Nos 1 to 8, inclusive, together.

I attended the Council of Europe summit in Reykjavik, Iceland, on 16 and 17 May. The Council of Europe was established in 1949 in the wake of the Second World War to uphold human rights, democracy, and the rule of law in Europe. The summit was only the fourth time it has met at leaders' level since its foundation.

During our Presidency of the Council of Europe last year, we pressed for the meeting to take place following Russia's invasion of Ukraine and its subsequent expulsion from the Council. We worked closely with the Icelandic Presidency in preparing the summit and the Reyjakvik Declaration that it adopted. The declaration reaffirmed the important work of the Council of Europe and expressed strong solidarity with Ukraine. The declaration also commits member states to fully implementing the decisions of the European Court of Human Rights.

Ahead of the summit proper, I met with the Secretary General of the Council of Europe.

Since Russia’s departure, the Council has been under increased financial pressure so Ireland pledged an additional voluntary contribution of €385,000, which will fund the work of the European Court of Human Rights as well as the Council's work on Belarus, its work on violence against women under the Istanbul Convention and also on Kosovo and LGBTI+ rights.

At the summit, I joined other heads of state and government in signing an instrument to establish a register of damage for Ukraine. It will help to ensure that Russia and its leaders will be held responsible for their actions. I also co-chaired a round-table discussion on the theme of supporting Ukraine in solidarity and accountability alongside the Slovenian President. This theme was also taken up in the general debate of the summit. I also took the opportunity to meet with the president of the European Court of Human Rights, Ms Justice Síofra O'Leary, who is an Irishwoman. I commended her on the important work of the court in upholding the European Convention on Human Rights and noted its importance to the peace process and Good Friday Agreement.

Following the summit, I had a bilateral meeting with the Prime Minister of Iceland, Ms Katrín Jakobsdóttir. Ireland and Iceland, as north Atlantic islands, have much in common and are very like-minded on many of the challenges the world faces, including climate action and protecting biodiversity and our oceans. We discussed how to intensify co-operation between our two countries at all levels and I invited her to make a formal visit to Ireland.

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