Results 7,261-7,280 of 51,889 for speaker:Micheál Martin

Select Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 27 - International Co-operation
Vote 28 - Foreign Affairs (1 Feb 2024)

Micheál Martin: The court had indicated that the case was live, was being pursued and would take everything from 2014 into consideration.

Select Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 27 - International Co-operation
Vote 28 - Foreign Affairs (1 Feb 2024)

Micheál Martin: There were issues in between that slowed down the decision to actually take it on board and prosecute it. However, it is being prosecuted. It will take in everything from 7 October to the present day, in respect of both Israel and Hamas. It would be very unusual for us to interfere with the courts. One cannot politicise the courts. There is a fear with all of the debates going on, and I...

Select Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 27 - International Co-operation
Vote 28 - Foreign Affairs (1 Feb 2024)

Micheál Martin: The latest news I have heard back from the court through my officials is that the court wants to get on with it. It does not want any more political pronouncements or people saying they are going to join. The court just wants to get on with it and get the resources. We also need to be careful of the whataboutery concerning the Middle East and Ukraine. One of the key issues that has not...

Select Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 27 - International Co-operation
Vote 28 - Foreign Affairs (1 Feb 2024)

Micheál Martin: My officials helpfully said to me that we normally do not publish, or are not allowed by the courts to publish the actual-----

Select Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 27 - International Co-operation
Vote 28 - Foreign Affairs (1 Feb 2024)

Micheál Martin: Hear me out. In order to be responsive and in trying to facilitate the Dáil and the Oireachtas, one potential idea is that we would summarise the key points of the submission and make it available to the Oireachtas and lay it before the House. I will have to check where that is at the moment.

Select Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 27 - International Co-operation
Vote 28 - Foreign Affairs (1 Feb 2024)

Micheál Martin: Yes.

Select Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 27 - International Co-operation
Vote 28 - Foreign Affairs (1 Feb 2024)

Micheál Martin: I appreciate the Deputy's comments on the embassies. Our diplomatic services provide very high value for money. There is a lot of leadership in the various missions. They are not large in numbers but they are strong in capacity and leadership and I think that is a distinguishing feature of our diplomatic service. Some of that is due to the manner and model of recruitment and the model of...

Select Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 27 - International Co-operation
Vote 28 - Foreign Affairs (1 Feb 2024)

Micheál Martin: I was not there then.

Select Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 27 - International Co-operation
Vote 28 - Foreign Affairs (1 Feb 2024)

Micheál Martin: Generally speaking, my own view, for what it is worth, is that Department missions are where the action is. There will always be specific issues where the EU, for example, has envoys. Eamon Gilmore would have been the European Union envoy on the Colombia peace process. The fact he was a former politician should not disqualify him. In fact, it made him a good candidate. They were very...

Select Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 27 - International Co-operation
Vote 28 - Foreign Affairs (1 Feb 2024)

Micheál Martin: We should, perhaps, just pull ourselves back from what tends to happen in the House every now and again where there is a huge noise around a given situation which, perhaps, could have been handled differently. We should be careful if we just say, "No, never again" when this happens. Sometimes the need does not justify it. If one thinks about it, Joe Kennedy is an envoy from the US...

Select Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 27 - International Co-operation
Vote 28 - Foreign Affairs (1 Feb 2024)

Micheál Martin: -----and ask for an investigation.

Select Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 27 - International Co-operation
Vote 28 - Foreign Affairs (1 Feb 2024)

Micheál Martin: No, I appreciate that and it is not fair on the individual either.

Select Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 27 - International Co-operation
Vote 28 - Foreign Affairs (1 Feb 2024)

Micheál Martin: It is.

Select Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 27 - International Co-operation
Vote 28 - Foreign Affairs (1 Feb 2024)

Micheál Martin: I am speaking out loud here. We need to be very careful that one does not confuse the mission.

Select Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 27 - International Co-operation
Vote 28 - Foreign Affairs (1 Feb 2024)

Micheál Martin: I am not referring to Deputy Carthy here but more generally. Our diplomatic service works well in the way it is modelled. In North America, it works superbly well. Long-established links with the Hill, with both sides of the aisle, both Senators and Congress people, are very good. I am not a fan of sending political envoys to override that because one asks who speaks for Ireland then....

Select Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 27 - International Co-operation
Vote 28 - Foreign Affairs (1 Feb 2024)

Micheál Martin: In regard to the EU, there was a peace process in Bogotá and a significant issue there. In our peace process, external help was very important. We had US envoys. For decommissioning, we had Martti Ahtisaari and Cyril Ramaphosa, and George Mitchell was an envoy who essentially kept the oil flowing in the talks process. It is that kind of thing which I get, but one does not want a...

Select Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 27 - International Co-operation
Vote 28 - Foreign Affairs (1 Feb 2024)

Micheál Martin: Again, we will look at any kind of worthwhile venture which comes forward. We support organisations but we do not supplant existing State funding for schools or whatever. Obviously, the bulk funding for a school would come, presumably, from the local government there or the education department in that area. We could, of course, then assess the situation with regard to any additional...

Select Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 27 - International Co-operation
Vote 28 - Foreign Affairs (1 Feb 2024)

Micheál Martin: Clearly it has had an impact on the Deputy.

Select Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 27 - International Co-operation
Vote 28 - Foreign Affairs (1 Feb 2024)

Micheál Martin: There you are now.

Select Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 27 - International Co-operation
Vote 28 - Foreign Affairs (1 Feb 2024)

Micheál Martin: I appreciate the points the Deputy has made. The figure of 88,000 this year was very similar to last year due to an intensive advertisement campaign we had before Christmas. We wanted to get people ready, alert and aware so that if they are planning on going on holidays, they should start working now on their passport. That has borne fruit in terms of the surge in passport applications we...