Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The lack of urgency on this by the Government is startling. We brought forward the legislation and it decided to stall it for nine months. That nine months is up in January and there is still no plan from the Government. In the meantime, bombs have rained down on the people of Gaza.

We have seen the destruction of hospitals and civilian infrastructure, and the destruction and targeting of schools. We have seen the deaths of thousands of women and children. We have seen the victims of war crimes right before our eyes. In the West Bank, Israeli settlers have stepped up their campaign of intimidation, dispossession and violence, aided and abetted by Israeli security forces. Our proposed legislation underlines that Ireland is saying it will not invest millions of euro of taxpayers' money to prop up that type of activity as regards illegal settlements in the occupied territories.

This should not take nine or 12 months or whatever. We need action on this. I ask that the Government works with Sinn Féin's aim to divest any assets the State has invested in companies operating in illegal settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories. Will the Minister commit to bringing that about? Will he say that we will find a way to make sure that no taxpayers' money is being invested in companies that are operating in illegal settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories?

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