Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)
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14. To ask the Taoiseach if he has spoken to the new British Prime Minister. [54594/22]

Ivana Bacik (Dublin Bay South, Labour)
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15. To ask the Taoiseach if he will report on his recent conversation with the new British Prime Minister. [55388/22]

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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16. To ask the Taoiseach if he has spoken to the new British Prime Minister. [57448/22]

Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE)
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17. To ask the Taoiseach if he has spoken to the new British Prime Minister. [57451/22]

Alan Farrell (Dublin Fingal, Fine Gael)
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18. To ask the Taoiseach if he will report on his recent meeting with the British Prime Minister; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [57460/22]

Neale Richmond (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)
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19. To ask the Taoiseach if he will report on his recent meeting with the UK Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities and Minister for Intergovernmental Relations, Michael Gove. [57759/22]

Mick Barry (Cork North Central, Solidarity)
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20. To ask the Taoiseach if he has spoken to the new British Prime Minister. [57932/22]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take question Nos. 14 to 20, inclusive, together.

This has been an intensive period for British-Irish relations. I will briefly outline to the House the extent of my recent engagements. On Wednesday, 26 October I congratulated the new British Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, on his appointment and we discussed a number of issues of mutual interest, including the Northern Ireland protocol. We then had a formal bilateral meeting on 10 November in advance of the British-Irish Council in Blackpool. This was a positive and constructive engagement, where in addition to Northern Ireland and the Northern Ireland protocol, we discussed the war in Ukraine, climate change, energy costs and inflation affecting both jurisdictions.

I welcomed the step back the UK Government had taken from calling fresh elections in Northern Ireland. I hope this will allow time to make progress on the EU-UK negotiations on the protocol. I also raised the Government's concerns regarding the Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Bill. I highlighted the upcoming 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement and flagged concerns regarding the stability and functioning of the institutions and the potential for increased polarisation of politics in Northern Ireland. The Prime Minister and I continued our conversation over dinner that evening.

I met British Secretary of State, Michael Gove, at the British-Irish Council, where we discussed a number of issues including the Nationality and Borders Act 2022 and the proposed electronic travel authorisation requirements, which are a matter of concern for us, and would undermine North-South co-operation in key areas such as transport, health and tourism.

The Scottish First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon, and I met to discuss joint initiatives at the British-Irish Council. On 10 November, I also undertook a trade, community and political programme in Manchester to show Government support for Irish business in the north of England. Earlier in the month, I travelled to Oxford to deliver the prestigious Romanes lecture. Finally, I travelled to Enniskillen for the Remembrance Day service on Sunday, 13 November. The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland also attended and we had a brief meeting.

Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent)
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We have only two speakers so I will allow Deputies some latitude.

Ruairi Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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I might not need quite this level of latitude. The Taoiseach has spoken a number of times to Prime Minister Sunak. It is fair to say we are somewhat more hopeful. Some of this is not on the basis of Mr. Sunak so much as the basis everyone believes that due to the conditions prevailing in the world today Britain needs a deal with the EU. I do not think there is anyone, especially in this Chamber, who does not want to see the protocol issue dealt with. We still have those fears at the back of our minds. We do not need the situation to disintegrate from a point of view of any possibility of a hard Border. I think all of us support anything that will streamline trade. Over the past number of years one could have made determinations on the basis of comments that have been made by British politicians and many such determinations would have been wrong.

I will not read too deeply into Britain not wanting a Swiss-style relationship with the European Union. We need it to move from better mood music into an actual deal on the protocol. Maroš Šefčovič and others are willing to do the heavy lifting as regards ensuring this can be as seamless as possible. We would all welcome that. In fairness, if that was the case, it would allow unionism off the hook it has found itself on. I imagine that in the Taoiseach's conversations with the Prime Minister, he will have said that everything has to be done from a point of view of getting the Executive back up and running. I welcome that the Taoiseach has dealt with some of the issues I intended to bring up. We are still dealing with the spectre of the protocol legislation, the Nationality and Borders Act 2022 and the amnesty=legacy or Bill of shame, as it has become known. I am not sure we will necessarily get what we want from the British Government. We have to maintain the pressure on it because there is an element of that government not really wanting to address the part it played and its dirty war in Ireland.

When the Taoiseach spoke to Nicola Sturgeon, did they have any conversations about the possibility of a Scottish referendum? We have all seen what has happened in the courts and the fact that this seems to be a gift that lies with the British Government. However, there is a feeling within the SNP that it would be very difficult for a British Government, no matter what it says, not to offer that referendum as a precedent has been set. Brexit is also a game changer in that respect.

Alan Farrell (Dublin Fingal, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Taoiseach for his response. There are few occasions when most, if not all, of the House is in agreement with policies that we have been pursuing for the past number of years, particularly on Brexit. Our bilateral relationship with the UK is of paramount importance to us. I appreciate that the Taoiseach's discussions with the new Prime Minister are probably at an initial stage, given his recent appointment. As my colleague mentioned, the issues relating to Brexit and the protocol are of paramount importance to this jurisdiction. The issues relating to the various legacy Bills that have been referred to, in particular the amnesty Bill, and our future relationship are also of critical importance. Some economic results were published earlier regarding the responses of countries post the Covid pandemic and to the war in Ukraine that show the UK is struggling when compared to the other nations within the EU and on the European Continent. In fact, I believe it is last.

With regard to those bilateral discussions on the protocol, does the Taoiseach believe there has been any formal shift or realisation that in order for the British Government to properly deal with these issues it has to do so in co-operation and consultation with the EU and our Government and unilateral action will lead to the potential destabilisation of a portion of our island, which would be detrimental? Will the Taoiseach take the opportunity during his next discussion with the Prime Minister to raise issues relating to potential terrorism threats in Northern Ireland, particularly in light of the recent attack in the North? I also ask the Taoiseach to comment on the legacy Bill specifically, which is of grave concern to many.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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I thank both Deputies for raising a range of issues. Deputy Ó Murchú asked about the mood music relating to a deal. The Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, was very clear that he wanted a negotiated settlement and outcome. There are issues the British Government feels need to be resolved. I was satisfied coming out of those meetings and we both agreed we would remain seized of the issue. We agreed that both of us would collectively seek to get this resolved within a reasonable timeframe. The key is that flesh is put on the bones of that commitment and that substantial negotiations take place between officials in the EU and the UK Government and that they have the political oversight and imprimatur to engage in negotiations.

I also said it is important that the voice of industry and business in Northern Ireland is heard consistently on this matter. The manufacturing industry is doing very well in Northern Ireland and does not have a problem with the protocol. The food industry is very worried about the legislation the British Government has brought in because it involves a dual regulatory framework, which would be damaging to the integrity of the food chain. It is clear that the legislation was not industry-proofed or business-proofed. That is a point I have consistently made to Maroš Šefčovič and to the British Government. To be fair, both have taken that on board, as has the British ambassador here. Maroš Šefčovič has met with industry representatives in Northern Ireland and has heard about this at first-hand. There are issues around consumer goods and so on that have been legitimately raised and that we simply have to deal with.

I am very concerned about the Nationality and Borders Act. It makes no sense in the context of the North-South relationship and I raised that with Michael Gove. It will basically mean that an American tourist or anybody else coming into Ireland cannot go North without electronic travel authorisation requirements being fulfilled. The UK Government has indicated that it is going to engage with the Irish Government on that issue. Within Northern Ireland itself, that must be understood and highlighted because from a practical point of view, it is not implementable anyway. People coming into the country who may have an itinerary for the entire island do not want to break the law. Having that imposition on them could be damaging to Northern Ireland's economy in a practical sense.

Both Deputies raised the legacy issue. We have said to the British Government that we do not agree with what it is proposing. There have been discussions between the Minister for Foreign Affairs and his counterpart and the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland in respect of that at the British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference. It is not on that people should get off scot-free for terrible crimes. That applies to everybody, including paramilitaries, those involved in Provisional Sinn Féin and loyalist paramilitaries. If victims want to pursue an issue, they should be allowed do so. We have to put the needs of victims at the centre of the legacy issue. I have met many of the victims' organisations and they are very angry about this agreement. Legacy is not just for the British Government; it is for the Irish Government and for parties. I would argue that the Sinn Féin Party has a journey to travel as well in respect of the legacy issue.

I recently read through Professor Liam Kennedy's work relating to young people in the 1970s, 1980s and early 1990s who were subject to punishment beatings. I also listened to an excerpt from a podcast with a young man who was severely traumatised and badly beaten as a punishment meted out to him by paramilitaries. We have to pursue legacy on all fronts. That young generation in the North seems to be the forgotten generation of young people who were traumatised by the Provisional IRA in the interests of maintaining social control or because there had been antisocial behaviour and so on. The treatments that were meted out, the kneecappings that went on and so on, are the kinds of things that need to be looked at from a legacy perspective. We have never heard from that young generation. They have never really been engaged with around the trauma that was visited upon them and have never been apologised to. There has never been an acceptance that this was a completely unacceptable way to do things. Such beatings destroyed young people physically and left mental scars, and they were stigmatised in their broader community. Professor Kennedy has done some very good work in that respect but that has never really been highlighted or profiled in any way. That speaks to the comprehensive nature of legacy and dealing with legacy. It cannot just be one-dimensional. It cannot be one-sided. For our part in the Irish Government, we have told groups that have come to us saying there was collusion involving Irish security forces or the Garda that we are open to handing files over. We did the Smithwick tribunal. I have said to the unionist community and the Orange Order to bring cases if they have specific data and an evidence base. It applies all around. There has been some degree of documentation on that generation now academically but it has never come out of the academic confines to be faced up to.