Results 16,661-16,680 of 18,851 for speaker:Fergus O'Dowd

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: British Government Legacy Proposals: Discussion (7 Jul 2022)

Fergus O'Dowd: I think it is important to stress the balance in that view, in that whoever carried out evil acts and murdered people should be held to account and subject to due process. That is an important point to make.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: British Government Legacy Proposals: Discussion (7 Jul 2022)

Fergus O'Dowd: We will move on to the Sinn Féin slot now.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: British Government Legacy Proposals: Discussion (7 Jul 2022)

Fergus O'Dowd: One point is that under the Stormont House Agreement the Director of Public Prosecutions, DPP's, office decided who would be prosecuted. Not having that is an appalling vista.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: British Government Legacy Proposals: Discussion (7 Jul 2022)

Fergus O'Dowd: That is a fair point to make. I do not know if other people found it to be the same, but from the discussions we have had with people, there seems to be an increasing credibility in the system as it has developed up to now. Various people have said that to me.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: British Government Legacy Proposals: Discussion (7 Jul 2022)

Fergus O'Dowd: Our State could only start that process after the legislation was passed.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: British Government Legacy Proposals: Discussion (7 Jul 2022)

Fergus O'Dowd: Stopping inquests.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: British Government Legacy Proposals: Discussion (7 Jul 2022)

Fergus O'Dowd: The witnesses' contributions have been helpful. Moving on to the second round, I will ask a question. A solution was found to the problems in South Africa that was acceptable, but this legislation clearly is not acceptable. What should we do now to-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: British Government Legacy Proposals: Discussion (7 Jul 2022)

Fergus O'Dowd: The proposal in this legislation is that, once the individual makes a statement on the matter, that is it.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: British Government Legacy Proposals: Discussion (7 Jul 2022)

Fergus O'Dowd: Obviously, there are opposition parties in the United Kingdom. I do not mean this in a rude way, but what effort was put in to make sure that the arguments the witnesses are making now and that we are hearing were made to members of the UK Parliament? I would have thought that the Labour Party at least would take an interest in the point about Mr. Pinochet and company because Pinochet was a...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: British Government Legacy Proposals: Discussion (7 Jul 2022)

Fergus O'Dowd: I know other members want to come in. When a state actor who died during a legal process was being buried in the UK, there was a huge crowd at his funeral. We watched it on the television. The crowd included Members of Parliament and so on. He was a hero to those people. In other words, there is a huge issue with the policy we are making being reflected in the media or in people's...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: British Government Legacy Proposals: Discussion (7 Jul 2022)

Fergus O'Dowd: How were the witnesses able to fund their work? I am sorry, Senator McGahon.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: British Government Legacy Proposals: Discussion (7 Jul 2022)

Fergus O'Dowd: I will call Ms Gildernew if she is still online.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: British Government Legacy Proposals: Discussion (7 Jul 2022)

Fergus O'Dowd: We lost the last part of what Ms Gildernew was saying.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: British Government Legacy Proposals: Discussion (7 Jul 2022)

Fergus O'Dowd: And with victims at the centre.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: British Government Legacy Proposals: Discussion (7 Jul 2022)

Fergus O'Dowd: That is what the Stormont House Agreement was supposed to be about.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: British Government Legacy Proposals: Discussion (7 Jul 2022)

Fergus O'Dowd: The victims were a part of that and that is the truth of it.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: British Government Legacy Proposals: Discussion (7 Jul 2022)

Fergus O'Dowd: Okay. Does anybody else have any other comments before we close? I have more of a historical question. I remember when Steve Biko died in South Africa. What happened to him was appalling. Was there ever an outcome to his death in terms of what happened?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: British Government Legacy Proposals: Discussion (7 Jul 2022)

Fergus O'Dowd: He was very much a victim.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: British Government Legacy Proposals: Discussion (7 Jul 2022)

Fergus O'Dowd: This has been a very rewarding discussion. I am especially interested in the comments on truth and justice into the future that Professor McEvoy made when summing up. We should try to address that matter, because it would give closure to everybody and reveal the truth. If it is about truth, then putting all of those things into perspective and getting truth for all of those people who...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Local Authorities (14 Sep 2022)

Fergus O'Dowd: 55. To ask the Taoiseach the details on the total amounts of monies awarded to Louth County Council by his Department in each of the years 2016 to 2021 and to date in 2022, in tabular form; if he will seek details on the total monies drawn down and spent by Louth County Council over the same years in tabular form, and if not spent, the total monies that were returned to his Department...