Results 12,141-12,160 of 15,491 for speaker:Eamon Gilmore

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Passport Applications (19 Feb 2013)

Eamon Gilmore: The Passport Service has no record of a new application on behalf of the persons named. It is therefore not possible to make a statement on whether a new passport can issue at this time.

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Extraordinary Rendition Flights (19 Feb 2013)

Eamon Gilmore: Ireland has not permitted, does not permit and will not permit the use of Shannon Airport for the practice of extraordinary rendition. The Government’s complete opposition to this practice is reflected in the Programme for Government, which states that ‘we will enforce the prohibition on the use of Irish airspace, airports and related facilities for purposes not in line with...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Human Rights Issues (19 Feb 2013)

Eamon Gilmore: Article 2 of the EU-Israel Association Agreement states that respect for human rights and democratic principles are an essential element of the Agreement. This is an important clause which has been included at the EU’s insistence in all the Association Agreements with neighbouring states. It puts human rights clearly on the table as a matter for mutual concern and discussion. This...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: UK Referendum on EU Membership (19 Feb 2013)

Eamon Gilmore: I propose to take Questions Nos. 221 and 223 together. The UK’s relationship with the European Union is of course a matter, in the first instance, for its Government and people. Any question of a referendum is therefore a matter for the Government and people of the UK. I would, however, hope to see it continue to play a full and active part in the EU into the future. In common...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: G8 Summits (19 Feb 2013)

Eamon Gilmore: I welcomed the announcement by Prime Minister Cameron last November that Enniskillen in County Fermanagh would be the venue for the G8 summit. The announcement has also been warmly welcomed by political leaders in Northern Ireland. The summit will be the biggest international diplomatic gathering to be held in Northern Ireland and underlines the ongoing progress of the peace process. The...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Boston College Archives (19 Feb 2013)

Eamon Gilmore: Boston College has a long history of positive support for, and engagement in, the field of Irish Studies. It has played an important role in recording the history of Northern Ireland and the peace process which will be of ongoing value to historians and the study of conflict resolution. In March 2011 the British Government, acting on behalf of the Police Service of Northern Ireland, initiated...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Undocumented Irish in the USA (19 Feb 2013)

Eamon Gilmore: The welfare of the Irish abroad in general and especially the position of undocumented Irish immigrants in the United States remains an important priority for the Government. A resolution of the situation for undocumented Irish migrants will continue to be an important priority for the Government in our ongoing contacts with the US Administration and Congress. This issue will remain a...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: EU Presidency Priorities (19 Feb 2013)

Eamon Gilmore: The visit to Dublin by President Barroso and the College of Commissioners on 10 January was an important opportunity for the Irish Presidency to outline its priorities and to consult with the Commission on how best these could be advanced. The visit opened with a plenary meeting between the Government and the College which confirmed a high level of support for the Presidency priorities of...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Northern Ireland Issues (19 Feb 2013)

Eamon Gilmore: I propose to take Questions Nos. 227 and 230 together. The Irish Government continues to seek an independent public inquiry into the murder of Pat Finucane as committed to in the Weston Park Agreement; on the basis of the findings of Judge Cory on the likelihood of state collusion. The work undertaken by Desmond De Silva QC can facilitate this, in my opinion, by helping ensure that an...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Foreign Conflicts (19 Feb 2013)

Eamon Gilmore: I propose to take Questions Nos. 228 and 229 together. The conflict in the Middle East was discussed in the Foreign Affairs Council on 10 December 2012 and again at the 18 February meeting of the Council. Because of its wide and destructive implications for the Middle East peace process, the settlements issue almost invariably arises in discussions of this conflict. Ireland has been...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Northern Ireland Issues (19 Feb 2013)

Eamon Gilmore: The Government remains firmly committed to ensuring the full and effective implementation of the Good Friday Agreement, including the provision relating to a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland. The Good Friday Agreement sets out that a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland would include rights reflecting the principles of mutual respect for the identity and ethos of both communities and...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Northern Ireland Marching Season (20 Feb 2013)

Eamon Gilmore: I have discussed the ongoing situation regarding the flag protests and the upcoming marching season with the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Theresa Villiers, on a number of occasions, most recently in Dublin on 11 February last. I have also discussed these issues in ongoing contacts with the party leaders in Northern Ireland. The particular problem posed by non-notified parades...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Northern Ireland Marching Season (20 Feb 2013)

Eamon Gilmore: I assure the Deputy that this is very much on our agenda. The Parades Commission was established at the height of the Drumcree parade related violence under the 1998 Act and the policy underpinning this was to remove from the police the dual responsibility of taking decisions on parades and then having to police their own decisions. The Government strongly supports the work, mandate and...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Northern Ireland Marching Season (20 Feb 2013)

Eamon Gilmore: Every opportunity is taken to impress on the political leaders in Northern Ireland the importance of having an agreed position on parades, the issue of the shared future and, in particular, responding to street violence when it occurs. The position of both the Irish and British Governments was expressed clearly by both Secretary of State Villiers and I jointly when we met the First Minister...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: State Airports (20 Feb 2013)

Eamon Gilmore: I am aware that the Open Society Justice Initiative report, Globalizing Torture: CIA Secret Detention and Extraordinary Rendition, contains a compilation of existing publicly available material on the subject of extraordinary rendition. It does not contain any new information or make any new allegations in respect of Ireland. In particular, it does not allege that any person has ever been...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: State Airports (20 Feb 2013)

Eamon Gilmore: There is no evidence that any persons were transited through Shannon Airport for the purposes of extraordinary rendition or that any persons involved in the practice transited through the airport. What the reports referred to and what the recent report from the Open Society Justice Initiative refers to was the belief that certain commercial aircraft, which it believed were used for...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: State Airports (20 Feb 2013)

Eamon Gilmore: I repeat that we do not know, nor do we have any evidence or information, that any prisoner transported through an Irish airport was the subject of extraordinary rendition. The closest that anybody has come to making a linkage with Irish airports is a suggestion that some aircraft which may have been used for extraordinary rendition elsewhere and at a different time travelled through Shannon...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: State Airports (20 Feb 2013)

Eamon Gilmore: That is a matter for the Garda. No one has produced any evidence.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Human Rights Issues (20 Feb 2013)

Eamon Gilmore: Genuine concerns have repeatedly been raised about several aspects of this case by Deputies in the House and I have raised concerns very frankly with the British Government over the past two years, most recently when I met the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland last Monday, 11 February. The individual in question was sentenced in 1973 to two life terms and 20 years imprisonment to run...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Human Rights Issues (20 Feb 2013)

Eamon Gilmore: I have discussed issues relating to this and other prisoners with the Minister of Justice, Mr. David Ford, MLA, including the conditions in which they are being held. The Deputy has described the licence process and the issues that arose in that regard. As she is aware, a court case was also involved. My understanding is that the Parole Commissioners are due to consider her case shortly....