Rory Hearne (Dublin North-West, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

It is very clear that this Government is taking us away from the cherished neutrality we have had as a country and as a republic. Our neutrality is something that is core to what it means to be Irish today. It is not a passive thing but something that needs to be chosen and protected. What the Government is doing is shattering that neutrality. Arguably, it is making this decision without a proper discussion of its significance. We have brought forward this motion today because the people have the right to have a say on whether or not we are changing neutrality. The Government should put it to the people.

This is an abandonment of neutrality. In 2013 Micheál Martin said the triple lock was “the core of our neutrality”. I will repeat that. The Taoiseach, Micheál Martin, in 2013 said the triple lock was "the core of our neutrality". What has changed? How is it no longer the core of our neutrality? He also criticised Fine Gael for having an out of touch, ideological obsession and that making changes to the triple lock would undermine our neutrality. It is a U-turn on his position and that of Fianna Fáil and it appears it is just one more example of how Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil are indistinguishable from each other and how this Government is just rolling along with the drum beat to war which is being pushed at a European level and ditching our history of peacekeeping and peace making. We are moving from peace makers and peacekeepers to adding to this drum beat to war to bring Europe, the European Union, to war. We cannot get away from it. We should not pretend otherwise. At a European Union level there appears to be a desire for the creation of a European army and the European arms industry which Ireland is going along with rather than standing up for our neutrality. We can be different. There is nothing wrong with being different and standing up for our principles which Fianna Fáil said it stood for and went to the people and said it stood for. However, as my colleagues mentioned, it is one more promise being abandoned. Fine Gael did not mention the triple lock at all during the election. Fianna Fáil promised to reform it at some level. It can frame its proposals as reform but by removing the UN mandate, it is removing the triple lock.

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