Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Not that I am aware but I will double check for Deputy Murphy.

I thank Deputy Brendan Smith for the point he made today and has made on a number of occasions about the importance of the opportunity for Ireland and Britain to engage at a senior level. In my initial conversation with the Prime Minister, we spoke about the importance of getting the structure for engagement right, for the very reasons the Deputy said. It used to happen almost automatically that whoever the Taoiseach was would meet the British Prime Minister by virtue of our membership of the European Union. You would meet at European Council meetings and other events surrounding membership of the European Union. That stopped and now we need to find another mechanism or, as the Deputy suggested, determine how the mechanisms already in place North-South and east-west under the Good Friday Agreement can be harnessed. That may be the British-Irish Council with senior attendance or, as the Deputy said, senior individuals in the British Government attending the British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly. It is not for me to be prescriptive but if the Prime Minister and I can come to an understanding as to what that structured engagement looks like, much good will flow from that. We are all in politics; we all know that challenge emerges from a lack of dialogue and that issues can become more entrenched if there are no formats to talk person-to-person, counterpart-to-counterpart. I appreciate that the Prime Minister phoned me on his first day in office and has invited me to Downing Street next week. I take that as a good signal of his commitment to a reset in Anglo-Irish relations, which we need.

A number of people mentioned legacy. The Irish Government's position is clear; I think it is shared across this House. We do not support the legacy Act in any manner or means. We found ourselves having to launch an inter-state case. Not much unites all political parties in Northern Ireland; this has. I want to talk to the British Prime Minister about legacy and I am sure he will want to talk to us about it as well. He made commitments in his party's manifesto, which I welcome. I will not be prescriptive because I want to have that dialogue directly with the Prime Minister. There are some principles the Irish Government has. First, it has to be victim-centred. Second, the Northern Ireland Executive and parties in Northern Ireland need to have a role. It has to comply with the Good Friday Agreement and its processes. It has to be human rights-compliant as well.

On the Dublin and Monaghan bombings and the issue raised by Deputies Ó Murchú, Boyd Barrett and Smith, I was honoured on 17 May to attend a commemorative event to mark the 50th anniversary of the bombings and to meet some of the families of victims and survivors. It is important to recall that the investigation into the bombings remains an open case in this jurisdiction. The Garda has assisted the authorities in Northern Ireland in their investigations. Legislation was passed to enable cross-Border co-operation with Operation Denton. I understand the Tánaiste recently received correspondence but the fact is the Garda continues to work with the police ombudsman as it proceeds with its wide-ranging work.

I will discuss with my officials on how best to engage regarding Noah Donohoe.

On migration policy, we have to make sure the Common Travel Area is protected from abuse. That is the mechanism through which to explore the issue.

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