Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

-----on vulnerable children and women throughout the Gaza Strip. It is totally unacceptable. We have to work through the UN, as we are doing, to try to achieve a ceasefire. We must also work through the European Union.

Deputy Howlin captured the situation well when he went through the result of the vote in the UN General Assembly and spoke about how some European countries have voted subsequently. That shows the scale of the challenge the Irish Government has at EU Council level in the work it is trying to do. People might remember that in 1980, Ireland was the first country in the EU to advocate a two-state solution. That position resulted in it becoming European policy, which shows and underscores that Ireland's influence has always been greater than its size. It is why we will continue to work and put forward our view that we need an immediate ceasefire. The corridors for humanitarian access need to be opened urgently and permanently to ensure the most vulnerable people and citizens get the support they need. We must also ensure that vital aid, for which this State has provided additional money, is provided to assist people in vulnerable areas. We will continue to advocate that.

People have asked about the middle ground, which is an important aspect. How do we get the middle ground through? How do we find an achievable solution into the future? That is going to be very difficult. We all now appreciate the scale of the hill that we must climb to try to achieve that. We are working through actors in the region. The Tánaiste had a series of meetings and calls to try to get through that voice expressing the need for a moderate and sustainable future for a very complex region. The situation is complicated by Hezbollah and Iran. Many actors in the region are, unfortunately, out for bad faith. It is going to be difficult to do what we want.

Other Deputies mentioned Horizon Europe and various aspects relating to the Single Market. We are all aware that those considerations are governed by qualified majority voting rules and we obviously cannot deviate unilaterally from the Single Market because it would leave us open to enforcement proceedings by the European Commission. Deputy Howlin pointed out how the voting block lies in that regard, if we match it to the votes in the UN General Assembly. That shows the challenge the Irish Government has. However, we are working as best we can. I have huge faith in the European project's ability to work to get a result. We will be a voice to try to achieve that.

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