Results 31,101-31,120 of 40,897 for speaker:Simon Coveney

Other Questions: Foreign Conflicts (18 Jun 2019)

Simon Coveney: The EU has made the judgment call here. As I stated, I was not at that meeting this week because I was in Belfast. The Minister of State, Deputy McEntee, was at the meeting, however, and I will talk to her about it. I do think that the judgment of the EU is correct. This needs to be an African-led solution and this is an important intervention by the African Union. Suspending Sudan was a...

Other Questions: Brexit Preparations (18 Jun 2019)

Simon Coveney: As I outlined earlier in responding to Question No. 36, a no-deal Brexit remains a serious concern and we are preparing accordingly. A key part of the work across Government has been to put in place the necessary infrastructure, staffing and ICT capacity at the ports and airports to manage the new checks and controls that will be required on east-west trade in a no-deal Brexit. Work has...

Other Questions: Brexit Preparations (18 Jun 2019)

Simon Coveney: I am just trying to remember what we discussed the last time we had questions. There certainly has been a major focus on trying to ensure that we can continue to get goods to and from this island via the UK landbridge. We have also discussed with shipping companies the potential need for increased capacity for direct shipping access to and from mainland Europe, if we want to call it that....

Other Questions: Brexit Preparations (18 Jun 2019)

Simon Coveney: A number of these areas are EU competences. We rely on conversations with the European Commission on the collective contingency planning that the European Union does together. Many of the areas linked to trade require EU solutions and the licensing of hauliers is a good example. The EU has essentially stated that the current approach will be maintained for what will be a relatively short...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Human Rights (18 Jun 2019)

Simon Coveney: Ireland is a committed supporter of human rights defenders, open civil society space and the protection and promotion of fundamental rights and freedoms. I am aware of the difficult situation that exists for human rights defenders in Colombia, and I entirely reject the use of threats, intimidation and violence against those exercising and protecting their rights to freedom of expression and...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Dublin-Monaghan Bombings (18 Jun 2019)

Simon Coveney: 17 May last marked the 45th anniversary of the appalling attacks of the Dublin and Monaghan bombings in which 33 people were murdered. The Minister for Justice and Equality, Charles Flanagan TD, represented the Government at the remembrance ceremony in Dublin. The Government stands in solidarity with all those who lost loved ones or were injured on that day, and who continue to suffer as...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Middle East Peace Process (18 Jun 2019)

Simon Coveney: I propose to take Questions Nos. 48 and 52 together. Since I was appointed as Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, the Israel-Palestine conflict, and the situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory has been a very high priority for me personally. I have visited Israel and Palestine three times over the last eighteen months, holding meetings with the key interlocutors in both...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: EU Migration Crisis (18 Jun 2019)

Simon Coveney: I propose to take Questions Nos. 49 and 66 together. I am very concerned about the situation in the Mediterranean. Tackling the scourge of people trafficking and saving lives at sea is a priority for Ireland and we have been active in operations to tackle people-trafficking in the Mediterranean since 2015, first through Operation Pontus, a bilateral agreement between Ireland and Italy....

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Foreign Conflicts (18 Jun 2019)

Simon Coveney: Four years of conflict in Yemen has caused the world’s largest humanitarian crisis, with almost 80% of the population in need of humanitarian assistance. Ireland and the EU fully support the efforts of UN Special Envoy Martin Griffiths to bring about a negotiated solution. The Stockholm Agreement of December 2018 remains our best hope for a political settlement. There was some...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Middle East Peace Process (18 Jun 2019)

Simon Coveney: I propose to take Questions Nos. 51 and 74 together. Annexation of territory by force is illegal under international law, including the UN Charter, and the position of Ireland and the EU is clear. This is a fundamental principle of the relation of States and the rule of law in the modern world. Annexation by Israel of occupied territory, including in East Jerusalem, has no legitimacy, and...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Foreign Policy (18 Jun 2019)

Simon Coveney: I propose to take Questions Nos. 53 and 63 together. I have addressed these concerns in the question put to me by my colleague Deputy Boyd Barrett earlier in this session. As I stated previously, Ireland fully supports the right to assembly and freedom of expression. We encourage demonstrators to exercise their rights peacefully, as they did on Sunday 16 June, and call for security...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Brexit Data (18 Jun 2019)

Simon Coveney: In March 2019, the Department of Finance and the ESRI published a comprehensive assessment of the potential macroeconomic impact of Brexit on the Irish economy. This report shows that compared to a baseline in which there is no Brexit, the level of GDP in Ireland ten years after Brexit would be around 2.6 per cent lower in a 'Deal' scenario and 5.0 per cent lower in a 'Disorderly...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: UN Security Council (18 Jun 2019)

Simon Coveney: The campaign to secure an elected seat for Ireland on the UN Security Council is a priority across the whole of Government. With less than twelve months remaining until the expected date of the election, all appropriate multilateral and bilateral engagements are being utilised by An Taoiseach; I, as Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade; Ministers across Government and by...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Foreign Conflicts (18 Jun 2019)

Simon Coveney: I propose to take Questions Nos. 56 and 61 together. The ongoing political, social, economic and humanitarian crisis in Venezuela continues to have a devastating effect on the Venezuelan population, and an ever-growing impact on the wider region. The UN High Commissioner for Refugees and the International Organisation of Migration announced earlier this month that the number of...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: International Agreements (18 Jun 2019)

Simon Coveney: The decision of the United States to withdraw from the Iran nuclear agreement (JCPOA) is a matter of great regret. I have stated clearly on a number of occasions that the Iran nuclear agreement was a significant diplomatic achievement, that it was delivering as intended, and that, as verified by the International Atomic Energy Agency, Iran had implemented its commitments under the agreement....

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: International Agreements (18 Jun 2019)

Simon Coveney: Ireland and our EU partners have been following developments on the Helms-Burton Act over the last number of months and the issue has been discussed on several occasions at the EU Council Working Party on Transatlantic Relations (COTRA), at which Ireland has been represented at official level. It was also discussed at yesterday's FAC. Ireland’s reaction to the suspension of...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Foreign Policy (18 Jun 2019)

Simon Coveney: The number and complexity of humanitarian crises globally has increased in recent years, with the UN estimating that over 140 million people are in need of urgent humanitarian assistance and protection. Conflict is the most significant driver of this increased need. Ireland prioritises the provision of needs based, principled humanitarian aid to major humanitarian crises such as Syria...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Northern Ireland (18 Jun 2019)

Simon Coveney: I am aware of the Deputy’s concerns about the accommodation situation for prisoners in Maghaberry Prison. Responsibility for Maghaberry rests with the Northern Ireland Prison Service, which is overseen by the Northern Ireland Department of Justice. The Stocktake of the 2010 agreement between the NI Prison Service and the prisoners in the separated regime at Maghaberry was...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Overseas Development Aid (18 Jun 2019)

Simon Coveney: I refer to my response to Parliamentary Question 12 of 2 April 2019 which set out a possible path to reaching the 0.7% target by 2030. Allocations to ODA will be made annually as part of the normal budgetary process. The Government is already making progress, having increased allocations to official development assistance by 32% since 2014. Budget 2019 saw the highest increase in funding...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Northern Ireland (18 Jun 2019)

Simon Coveney: The absence of vital institutions of the Good Friday Agreement is of grave concern for the Government, as it is for the British Government. On 26 April, the Taoiseach and the UK Prime Minister announced a new phase of political talks in Northern Ireland, involving the five main parties, together with the British and Irish Governments. The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland and I...