Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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To ask the Taoiseach his views on the progress that has been made in relation to the implementation of the St. Andrews Agreement; the aspects of the agreement in which he is not satisfied with the rate of implementation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41258/12]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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To ask the Taoiseach when the next North South Ministerial meeting will take place; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [44246/12]

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 7 and 8 together.

The St. Andrews Agreement of 2006 was aimed at achieving full and effective operation of the political institutions in Northern Ireland, which has been achieved. The devolution of justice and policing powers to the Northern Ireland Assembly in 2010 was a significant step forward in the full implementation of the St. Andrews Agreement. Following the 2011 election, the Alliance Party leader David Ford was reappointed as Minister of Justice by cross-community vote and earlier this year the Executive agreed to extend his mandate beyond the April 2012 sunset clause provided for in the Hillsborough Agreement.

On strand 2 issues, it provided for a review of the existing North-South bodies to examine them from the points of view of efficiency and value for money.

It was also agreed that the review would look at the case for additional North-South bodies and areas of co-operation, as well as a replacement for the Irish Lights Agency. In regard to the first element of the review, on value for money and efficiency of the North-South bodies, it was agreed at the plenary meeting of the North-South Ministerial Council on 15 June 2012 to endorse the recommendations concerning the various bodies that had been made by the review group and agreed by Ministers at the relevant sectoral meetings. Progress has been disappointingly slow with regard to the second and third terms of reference of the review, which include the case for additional bodies and areas of co-operation within the North-South Ministerial Council. It was agreed at the last plenary meeting on 15 June that the First Minister, Deputy First Minister, Tánaiste and I will reflect and consult with a view to decisions being taken at the next plenary meeting. While these consultations have yet to be concluded, I hope progress can be made at the next plenary meeting on 2 November in Armagh.

The establishment of a North-South parliamentary forum was proposed as an integral part of the Good Friday Agreement and the St. Andrews Agreement. In addition to playing an important role in building understanding and co-operation for the common good of everyone on the island, such a forum would also have a valuable role in advising the Government and the Executive on economic, social and cultural issues with a cross-Border dimension. Following discussions and consultations, the Ceann Comhairle and the Speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly, Willie Hay, announced in July of this year that agreement had been reached on the establishment of the North-South Inter-Parliamentary Association. The association will provide a forum for regular and formal discussions between Members of the Northern Ireland Assembly and Members of both Houses of the Oireachtas on issues of mutual interest and concern, as envisaged in the agreements. Under its terms of reference, the association will meet twice yearly on a rotational basis. This historic milestone is another major stepping stone in the peace process and should be recognised as such. I have already congratulated the Ceann Comhairle on his intensive efforts and those of the Speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly. I do so again now. I welcome the holding of the inaugural plenary meeting of the association the Seanad Chamber on Friday, 12 October 2012. I understand it was very successful.

The establishment of a North-South consultative forum has been discussed at all plenary meetings of the North-South Ministerial Council since the institutions were restored in 2007. In the interim, the Government facilitated three consultative conferences in Farmleigh, involving social partners and other civil society groups from across the island. Despite this, progress has not been made. Regrettably, it appears that the Executive will be unable to advance the issue for the moment. The establishment of the British-Irish Council secretariat earlier this year in Edinburgh is to be welcomed. Together with my relevant ministerial colleagues, I have attended three plenary meetings of the British-Irish Council. The next meeting is scheduled to take place on 26 November in Wales. A limited number of areas relating to the Good Friday Agreement and the St. Andrews Agreement remain to be implemented. A bill of rights for Northern Ireland is currently under consideration by the British Government following a public consultation in Northern Ireland. The key issue of an Irish language act, as agreed at St. Andrews, remains unresolved. Some progress has been made in securing measures to promote and protect the Irish language and Ulster Scots, which have been the subject of recent consultation strategy papers by the Northern Ireland Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure. I hope to see progress on these outstanding issues.

Since my Government came into office, Ministers have attended over 17 North-South Ministerial Council sectoral meetings. I have attended three plenary meetings of the North-South Ministerial Council. Across a range of issues, the North-South Ministerial Council is facilitating economic and social activities on a cross-Border, all-island basis. The next plenary meeting of the North-South Ministerial Council, which takes place on Friday, 2 November in Armagh, will be hosted by the Northern Ireland Executive. The meeting will provide an opportunity to discuss the forthcoming Irish Presidency of the European Union. In this context, the Government is maximising North-South engagement in the run-up to and during the Irish Presidency, including opportunities for participation in Presidency-related events and the secondment of a small number of officials from the Northern Civil Service to work in our system. The North-South Ministerial Council will consider possible future EU programmes and ongoing co-operation on a range of North South co-operation initiatives. There may be an opportunity to discuss the north-west gateway initiative. I also intend to welcome the inaugural plenary meeting of the North South Inter-Parliamentary Association.

The House will be aware that I have initiated a number of sensitive meetings with the families of victims on all sides to hear at first hand how their lives have been affected by atrocities from the Troubles. I have met the families of victims of the Kingsmills massacre and victims of the Troubles in east Fermanagh. My officials recently met the Ballymurphy families as part of the preparations for a meeting with me. My colleague, the Minister for Arts, Heritage and Gaeltacht Affairs, Deputy Deenihan, is working proactively with his counterpart in the Northern Executive to ensure the decade of centenaries is celebrated on a shared basis and with respect. We welcomed the 29 September event celebrating the Ulster Covenant as a central part of this process, albeit with concerns around some aspects of parading. The conflict in Northern Ireland which dominated the British-Irish relationship for decades has been replaced with a peace process opening a space for a relationship to develop which "has never been stronger or more settled". Last year marked a turning point in British-Irish relations, which began with the visit to Ireland of Queen Elizabeth. By any standard, the events of those four days were groundbreaking. The visit was and is rightly a source of great pride for all the people of these islands. The British Prime Minister, Mr. Cameron, and I agreed that our joint statement of 12 March last would be the starting point for the realisation of the potential over the next decade of stronger relations for current and future generations living on both islands. The joint statement now provides a framework within which work is being carried forward on further joint actions and collaboration over the medium to longer term.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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It is fair to say that the basic infrastructure put in place under the Belfast Agreement means that meetings, committees and engagements keep going on no matter what. It is also fair to say that very little progress can be achieved if all sides are simply going through the motions. That is sometimes the sense one gets as one observes the situation. That is what we are getting from the Government and from some of the political parties involved. There is an urgent need to avail of the framework created by the St. Andrews Agreement within which certain issues can be pursued. It is clear that by any yardstick, the Assembly and the Executive are not working optimally. Much more needs to happen if the Executive and the Assembly are to be seen to be working for the better interests of people. In the last year and a half, I have not discerned any single initiative to move the process forward. I do not think the Taoiseach has spent enough time on the issue. I would like to ask him about the case for additional North-South bodies. Has he suggested any particular additional bodies, or additional areas of co-operation between North and South, that could be created under the St. Andrews Agreement or under the review of North-South bodies? If he has, could he outline to the House the areas that might be involved? What is the roadblock in terms of their pursuit? The Taoiseach said that "progress has been disappointingly slow" on the North-South agenda. That is my observation as well. That is why I said what I said recently. At the initial stage of the Good Friday Agreement, significant progress was made under the auspices of a range of North-South bodies like Waterways Ireland and Tourism Ireland. There is now a sense that momentum is being lost and people are just going through the motions. What is the Taoiseach's agenda now in terms of moving the North-South issues on and in terms of the broader implementation of the St. Andrews Agreement? What does he want to achieve in his discussions on the North-South axis and on the British-Irish axis? Has he raised the question of an Irish language act with the British Prime Minister recently? What is his sense in terms of progress with the formulation of such an Act?

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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I did not raise the specific Irish language issue with David Cameron. The strategic partnership agreement that we signed enhances the relationship between Ireland and Britain, and between here and Northern Ireland, to a great extent. I do not have any great wish to set off on the appointment of a plethora of new bodies for the moment. Before I give the Deputy a view of some of the things we are interested in and where some activity is taking place, I will reiterate that much more can be done and emphasise that it would be much easier if this economy were in a strong and thriving position.

For instance, in the transport area, the Ministers have agreed on a detailed timetable for drafting the passage and enactment of parallel legislation North and South by 31 December 2014 to allow the mutual recognition of penalty points across the island of Ireland.

Tourism Ireland continues to build on the success of the 2011 marketing campaigns, which resulted in an increase in overseas visitors for the first time since 2007. Given the success of the Irish Open held in Northern Ireland and the world rankings of a small but influential number of golfers here, this speaks for itself. Next year, of course, Derry has Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann and is the international City of Culture, and there is a great deal of activity going on between tourism areas North and South.

InterTradeIreland is working to encourage and stimulate a great deal of co-operation to increase applications to the EU framework programme, including enhanced levels of participation by small and medium-sized enterprises. At the Council meeting on Thursday and Friday, leaving aside other matters that were discussed, there was quite a discussion on the Compact for Growth and Jobs, with particular emphasis on SMEs across the EU, in which 18 million people are unemployed. Earlier in the year the Special EU Programmes Body had a successful open call for INTERREG applications, with 91 applications requesting over €217 million.

In the environment field, a great deal of progress has been made on the repatriation of illegally dumped waste, which I consider important. Education is a sector of great promise and the Minister, Deputy Quinn, and his counterpart are active in this regard. Among the work being undertaken is a joint attitudinal survey to inform cross-Border pupil movement and school planning and liaison between the two teaching councils, with the object of facilitating greater mobility of teachers across the island.

In health, there is ongoing co-operation on a minimum unit price for alcohol and proposals for a North-South alcohol forum to develop strategies on alcohol in both jurisdictions, on which the Minister of State at the Department of Health, Deputy White, will be working. Planning is well advanced for the establishment of the radiotherapy unit at Altnagelvin; construction will commence in 2013 and the unit will be operational in 2016. The Deputy is also aware of the position regarding the A5 and A8 roads.

I refer also to the statement by the Minister for Finance that a great deal of work is ongoing with regard to research into illegal activity in diesel, which is so important for both economies. The aim is to have the capacity to trace movement of volumes of diesel and to have an ingredient that cannot be washed out in order to deal with the illegal activities which have gone on for a long time. Despite the current budgetary challenges, the Government remains fully committed to the PEACE III projects and will see that they continue.

There is a measure of work that each of the groups and bodies can do and I would like to see progress in this regard before we set out with a range of achievements in just setting up new bodies. To be honest, I am not aware of the difficulties that apply with regard to the Ulster Scots and Irish language Bill but that is an issue I intend to take up when I visit the North in the not-too-distant future. I also want to reflect on the issue of the Bill of Rights and examine the current situation in that regard. As I said, I spoke to the Prime Minister, Mr. Cameron, briefly on Thursday and Friday and discussed a number of issues I hope to follow through with him over the period ahead.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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I am somewhat concerned. First, I see nothing new in what the Taoiseach has just said, so my basic criticism remains that nothing new is being added to the narrative in terms of progressing the St. Andrews Agreement and the North-South issues. I am concerned that, despite the fact that the St. Andrews Agreement provides for a case to be made for additional bodies, the Taoiseach does not seem to have made any case at all and, indeed, does not even believe there should be an additional body, if I am to pick up on what he just said.

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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I want to make the ones that are there work first.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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He said he was not going to set off to appoint a plethora of new bodies. It was announced that the position of the Irish Government was that there should be a replacement for the Lights Agency and also that it would seek areas in which we could appoint new bodies. To make a suggestion, one obvious area is the food sector. There is food safety, but we could broaden that out. Food is an area that is crying out for an all-island approach.

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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We have a lot to do.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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There are other areas in which bodies could be useful if people would get over their political problems in facilitating them. The Irish language Bill is also a requirement of the St. Andrews Agreement. I am somewhat concerned by the Taoiseach's statement that he is not aware of the difficulties. He has been in office for 18 months and should be aware of some of the difficulties.

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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I have a lot of difficulties to deal with, most of them created by the Deputy's-----

A Deputy:

It is 21 months.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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Sorry, 21 months.

Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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Will Deputy Martin do a report on all of that?

Seán Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, Ceann Comhairle)
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Order, please.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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I ask the Taoiseach to get on his bike and start promoting the actual agreement the two sovereign Governments-----

Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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We will commission a few reports.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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These are issues the sovereign Governments have agreed on with the parties. People signed off on these issues at St. Andrews, so they are not optional extras.

The other key point is that we need far more in terms of anti-sectarian initiatives and the building of cross-community relationships. I ask the Taoiseach, even from the limited budget available, to add something in order to give momentum and to support the historic approach of our Government.

The other big issue I am concerned about is the poverty in many parts of Northern Ireland. The child poverty rate of 46% in west Belfast is extraordinary and is something we need to address. This affects the entire island. In addition, there are loyalist areas in which there are high rates of early school-leaving and health indices are very poor by international standards, as we know from the all-island mortality studies. If we do not get to grips with those more fundamental issues-----

Brian Hayes (Dublin South West, Fine Gael)
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Maybe the Deputy should organise to be part of that.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Maybe he should look at Cork.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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-----then we are storing up problems for ourselves in terms of the future of the island. That is my main outstanding concern. Having been a Minister for Foreign Affairs, with experience of where some of the support for certain groups comes from, I believe we need to do an awful lot more to ensure the Good Friday Agreement has a social and economic dividend. It was never meant to be just about the absence of violence; it was much more than that. The aim was that people in Northern Ireland, particularly those on the lowest incomes, the most vulnerable and those at risk of poverty, would see the benefits. The fact that 46% of children in west Belfast are living in poverty, according to the most recent survey, is a damning indictment.

Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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I spent yesterday at Stormont. I brought a delegation of farmers from County Louth up to meet the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, and we had a good, solid meeting, with the IFA and the Ulster Farmers' Union in attendance. I have to say people everywhere were electrified by the fact that an Teachta Martin had discovered the North again. People were delighted to hear him raising all of these issues.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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Especially Deputy Adams.

Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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I want the Government to be doing more, but this Government is doing no more or less than the last Government did.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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That is not true.

Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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That is absolute fact.

Seán Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, Ceann Comhairle)
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Is there a supplementary question?

Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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Annex B of the St. Andrews Agreement deals with the issue of prisoners and integration into society. I sent the Taoiseach a file on Marian Price and Martin Corey and I wrote to him on that issue. These two citizens are held without any legal process whatsoever - none. They are interned. They are held in camera. There is some sort of a review but there is no public legal process. Has the Taoiseach raised this issue on the back of my letter and my sending the report to him? If not, will he raise this issue?

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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Deputy Martin seems to think we can be moving around Europe, Northern Ireland and everywhere but here. I remind him there is a set of circumstances that apply in sorting out our own public finances and getting our economy moving again, which take up the vast majority of my time, as he will understand.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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The photo-ops take up the vast majority of his time. The PR companies are in full flight.

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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I like to think there is a great deal of work that can be done by the bodies that are already set up. I want to follow this through at the next North-South Ministerial Council on 2 November.

I take the Deputy's point about the anti-sectarian issue. That is an issue of concern to everyone. Deputy Martin is well aware of the close co-operation between the PSNI and the Garda. Yes, I saw some of the Northern Ireland producers at the SIAL exhibition for food producers in Paris yesterday. It is the second biggest such exhibition in the world. It was enormous. I was happy to launch the international element of Origin Green, which is a programme for Irish producers in competition with others from around the world involving the highest standard of quality foodstuffs. The programme is going very well.

Deputy Adams inquired about Ms Marian Price-McGlinchey and Martin Corey. I received the file the Deputy sent and I have read it. An appeal hearing on the case is to be heard this week on 26 October. Clearly, I cannot comment in advance of it, but I have the file and I have read it. I will await the outcome of the hearing this week before I make any further comment on it.

Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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A Cheann Comhairle-----

Seán Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, Ceann Comhairle)
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No, I am sorry. I cannot take any more questions.

Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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Okay.