Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Aontú)

I welcome this motion and I welcome the opportunity to sign it. Ireland is on the verge of Irish unity. Full independence is within touching distance for this generation. Full self-determination is in the reach of this Dáil. There is a once-in-a-century alignment of factors that has opened the door to the possibility of unity. We have demographics, Brexit and the increasing change between North and South in terms of living standards. Irish unity is a matter of justice, economic necessity and national interest.

The men and women of 1916, who fought in the Easter Rising, knew that unity and independence were not just a pipe dream. It was actually a matter of survival. That was the generation that rose from the ashes of the Famine. They knew that decisions made in London would never be in the interests of the Irish people. They knew there was a massive cost to London rule and that self-determination was key to economic survival.

Brexit has shown that without a shadow of a doubt. London does not give a tuppenny damn about the North of Ireland. The North of Ireland was the last thing in the minds of the little Englanders as they pushed for Brexit. If you want to clear the floors of the Houses of Parliament in England, all you have to do is push for a debate on the North of Ireland.

Irish unity is a key pillar for Aontú. Our very name means "unity". We are a practical united Ireland party and we want this country to start the process along that journey. We believe the Border is a wall with a thousand blocks. Each block stands for a blockage between North and South. For example, there are two air ambulance services not working together. Two cancer services are disjointed. Two university systems are working in isolation from each other and it goes on and on. Even if you look at planning, the motorway that was built from Belfast to Newry turned left to a small village, Warrenpoint, instead of going straight to Dublin. When they went to build another university in the north of Ireland, they did not go for Derry in the north west; they went for it being built on the other side of the Bann.

I had the honour of researching and authoring the first committee report on the all-Ireland economy in Leinster House since partition. I interviewed about 100 people from all communities and walks of life: business people, trade unionists, people from the community sector etc. All of them agreed that if we plan, fund and deliver together that infrastructure and those services will be more efficient and better for people.

What we are saying to the Government is that while we are waiting for unity, there is nothing stopping this Government and the Executive in the North of Ireland from taking down each brick in the Border one by one. That would improve the lives of people in terms of making those services better but it would also make the transition to unity easier. It would create a process of convergence on both sides of the Border that would make that sunny day happen much sooner.

Traditionally, people felt that unionists were the major block to Irish unity but that is not the case. Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael are the biggest barriers to Irish unity at the moment. They will not say it out loud-----

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