Results 19,621-19,640 of 21,096 for speaker:Charles Flanagan

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Appointment of Special Envoys and Update on Afghanistan: Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defence (31 Aug 2021)

Charles Flanagan: I thank Deputy Cowen. I call Deputy Brady.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Appointment of Special Envoys and Update on Afghanistan: Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defence (31 Aug 2021)

Charles Flanagan: I thank the Deputy. I am very conscious of time and am anxious to have time for a second round. We do not have jurisdiction over or a role in the matter of private parties in Dublin hotels. However, the Minister can answer for himself. As regards FOI requests, there is an accepted practice and procedure that I am sure has not been departed from, but the Minister might be able to assist in...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Appointment of Special Envoys and Update on Afghanistan: Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defence (31 Aug 2021)

Charles Flanagan: I thank Senator O'Reilly. I will revert to the Minister. Questions were posted by Deputies Cowen and Brady and Senator Joe O'Reilly. I will give the Minister a couple of minutes to respond and will then come back in. There are nine members offering. I will resume with Deputy Gannon, Senators Craughwell and Ardagh and Deputy Clarke, in that order. I call on the Minister to respond to the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Appointment of Special Envoys and Update on Afghanistan: Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defence (31 Aug 2021)

Charles Flanagan: What about the FOI request to the Department?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Appointment of Special Envoys and Update on Afghanistan: Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defence (31 Aug 2021)

Charles Flanagan: I am conscious that there are nine members on my list for questions. I ask the Secretary General to be brief and concise. Perhaps he might like to deal with the issue of the FOI request, as raised by Deputy Brady. I call on the Secretary General.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Appointment of Special Envoys and Update on Afghanistan: Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defence (31 Aug 2021)

Charles Flanagan: Will the Secretary General comment on the charge that in this case the Department has departed from the accepted practice and procedure on the matter of freedom of information requests?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Appointment of Special Envoys and Update on Afghanistan: Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defence (31 Aug 2021)

Charles Flanagan: I revert to members of the committee, commencing with Deputy Gannon.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Appointment of Special Envoys and Update on Afghanistan: Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defence (31 Aug 2021)

Charles Flanagan: I ask the Minister to send a note to the committee. We can have a look at that. I am keen to let Deputy Gannon in, as well as others who have been waiting.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Appointment of Special Envoys and Update on Afghanistan: Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defence (31 Aug 2021)

Charles Flanagan: I call Deputy Gannon, to be followed by Senator Craughwell, Senator Ardagh and Deputy Clarke.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Appointment of Special Envoys and Update on Afghanistan: Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defence (31 Aug 2021)

Charles Flanagan: I thank Senator Ardagh. We will have some more questions now before returning to the Minister. I call Deputy Clarke.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Appointment of Special Envoys and Update on Afghanistan: Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defence (31 Aug 2021)

Charles Flanagan: On that point, did the Minister see any connection between the function in the Merrion Hotel to which he was invited by text and the appointment?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Appointment of Special Envoys and Update on Afghanistan: Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defence (31 Aug 2021)

Charles Flanagan: Did she have any reason-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Appointment of Special Envoys and Update on Afghanistan: Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defence (31 Aug 2021)

Charles Flanagan: -----to suspect the matter might have been on a Cabinet agenda?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Appointment of Special Envoys and Update on Afghanistan: Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defence (31 Aug 2021)

Charles Flanagan: Had she any reason to suspect the matter might have been the subject of a Cabinet agenda item ten days later?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Appointment of Special Envoys and Update on Afghanistan: Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defence (31 Aug 2021)

Charles Flanagan: I am conscious of the fact we have a number of members who have not come in.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Appointment of Special Envoys and Update on Afghanistan: Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defence (31 Aug 2021)

Charles Flanagan: I ask Deputy Brady to desist for a moment. I will let him in before the end of the meeting but I am conscious Deputies Lawless and Stanton have not had an opportunity to ask questions. I will call Deputy Lawless, Senator Wilson and Deputy Stanton, who have been waiting, and then we may have an opportunity for supplementary questions, as I indicated earlier. I ask that the questions be...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Appointment of Special Envoys and Update on Afghanistan: Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defence (31 Aug 2021)

Charles Flanagan: I call Senator Wilson, who was the first to contact me seeking this meeting when the controversy erupted towards the end of July.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Appointment of Special Envoys and Update on Afghanistan: Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defence (31 Aug 2021)

Charles Flanagan: I thank Deputy Stanton. I think it is timely, having regard to what Deputy Stanton said, that I should intervene on the basis that our meeting must come to a conclusion in about 25 minutes' time. A number of direct and serious questions have been put to the Minister for response. I am very keen that he has the opportunity to respond. I am conscious of the fact that I still see the hands...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Appointment of Special Envoys and Update on Afghanistan: Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defence (31 Aug 2021)

Charles Flanagan: It appears to be the consensus of the committee that we continue, allow the Minister to respond and deal with a number of outstanding issues. We will defer the matter of Afghanistan until the earliest possible opportunity, which will, at the earliest, be the end of next week or probably the week after. Is that agreed? Agreed.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Appointment of Special Envoys and Update on Afghanistan: Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defence (31 Aug 2021)

Charles Flanagan: I think we have reached agreement on that with Deputies Gannon, Brady and Cowen and Senators Ardagh and Craughwell, who I cannot see, but who I think has indicated that he wishes to ask a further question. I ask the Minister, having regard to the time for this section of the meeting in which we have 25 minutes remaining, to respond to Deputy Lawless and others. I am anxious to come back for...