Results 9,441-9,460 of 40,897 for speaker:Simon Coveney

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Foreign Conflicts (17 Sep 2019)

Simon Coveney: Ireland is part of that group. We said that we would play our part in burden sharing so that we would not have this case-by-case series of phone calls every time there is an NGO or state vessel that has migrants on board, in the hope that different countries will take ten, 20 or 30 refugees here or there. We have been doing that for the last year, quietly taking our share and trying to...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Middle East Peace Process (17 Sep 2019)

Simon Coveney: I propose to take Questions Nos. 45 and 64 together. I do not think anything is inevitable. We do not have the outcome of the election yet so I do not think we should make predictions. I made a statement on this matter in an earlier reply, as the Deputy acknowledged. I underline again that Ireland and the EU will closely monitor the actions of the next Israeli Government in the context...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Middle East Peace Process (17 Sep 2019)

Simon Coveney: I do not accept that it is the strategic goal of the Israeli state. Israeli policy with regard to the West Bank has changed at times. We have been very close to comprehensive peace agreements on a number of occasions where Israeli politics has sought a fair solution based on a two-state solution for both Israelis and Palestinians. The Deputy should not categorise this as a policy that has...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Middle East Peace Process (17 Sep 2019)

Simon Coveney: I share the Deputy's concern and scepticism. Over the past two years, we have seen a significant deterioration in the relationship between Israeli and Palestinian political leaders. We have also seen a significant deterioration in the relationship between Palestinians and the US. That is regrettable because instead of trying to make progress towards peace, in many ways we have been moving...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Undocumented Irish in the USA (17 Sep 2019)

Simon Coveney: I am very familiar with the Keith Byrne case. I spoke to his family at the time and we did what we could to help him. There are many other Keith Byrnes who have made the US their home, have family and children and good jobs and are contributing as good citizens in the US. We need to help them and we are trying. The truth, though, as the Deputy will know, is that immigration and...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Foreign Conflicts (17 Sep 2019)

Simon Coveney: I am deeply troubled by the escalation of violence in Libya in recent months, which we have spoken about in this House on a number of occasions, particularly the ongoing fighting around Tripoli, which is endangering thousands of civilians and putting already vulnerable migrants and refugees in Libya at further risk. The EU has called on all parties to implement immediately a ceasefire and...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Foreign Conflicts (17 Sep 2019)

Simon Coveney: I absolutely stand over what the Deputy quoted. I have been quite critical of the EU in terms of our inability to be able to agree collectively an approach not just on migration generally but on the need for humanitarian assistance and rescue capacity in the Mediterranean. I know there is a concern about creating pull factors and so on. There is some legitimacy to that concern, but it is...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Brexit Preparations (17 Sep 2019)

Simon Coveney: On the last question, the French have been unbelievably helpful on this issue. They have committed to ensuring there is a separate lane in Calais for Irish trucks coming off ships that have come over from Dover. I do not expect the same facilitation on the UK side in Dover, where there may be very long queues, and I certainly do not expect that Irish trucks will be able to skip those...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Brexit Preparations (17 Sep 2019)

Simon Coveney: There are concerns about the readiness of some in the haulage business for the new realities in terms of paperwork and what they need to do. We want to work with them. My message to all hauliers it is that they need to prepare for a very different trade environment and that we are going to help them to do that. We can give them advice and financial support. We want to make sure that the...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Undocumented Irish in the USA (17 Sep 2019)

Simon Coveney: The Taoiseach and I have prioritised the issue of Irish immigration in the US since taking office. We will continue our efforts in this regard until we secure progress, both in terms of future legal immigration opportunities for Irish citizens and also in securing a pathway for those Irish who are undocumented to regularise their status. The Special Envoy to the US Congress on the...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Undocumented Irish in the USA (17 Sep 2019)

Simon Coveney: For those in the House who are not familiar with it, the E3 Bill is essentially a provision that allows for a certain quota of visas to be provided for Australians every year. However, each year a significant number of those visas are not used. What we were looking for, and what we had lobbied to try to achieve, was a system such that Ireland could potentially use the unused Australian visas...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh (Atógáil) - Priority Questions (Resumed): Middle East Issues (17 Sep 2019)

Simon Coveney: I may be wrong but I think I was one of the first foreign Ministers to respond directly, using the most effective medium available, namely, social media, to get the message out quickly. Others have also commented, although not enough people commented directly on the threat. The EU issued an appropriate collective statement of concern. I asked the Secretary General of my Department to...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh (Atógáil) - Priority Questions (Resumed): Middle East Issues (17 Sep 2019)

Simon Coveney: I am flying to New York on Sunday. I might be wrong but I think there is a dinner on Sunday evening specifically for EU foreign ministers to discuss the Middle East peace process. That is not unusual, as we had something similar last year during the week of the UN General Assembly. There will be a real opportunity to discuss these issues directly. As Deputy Howlin might know, Ireland has...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh (Atógáil) - Priority Questions (Resumed): Middle East Issues (17 Sep 2019)

Simon Coveney: It is too early to say but I think the EU would respond very negatively if there were attempts by Israel to effectively annex up to 30% of the West Bank. I think the EU would respond in an extraordinarily negative way to that development.

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Brexit Preparations (17 Sep 2019)

Simon Coveney: I propose to take Questions Nos. 42 and 48 together. Upon leaving the EU, the United Kingdom will accede to the common transit convention, CTC. Under the convention, goods moving from Ireland to another member state via the UK, or vice versa, will move under the customs internal transit procedure. Once Union goods are moving under the customs transit procedure from one member state to...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh (Atógáil) - Priority Questions (Resumed): Brexit Preparations (17 Sep 2019)

Simon Coveney: On the Deputy's last question, in order for funds to be drawn down, people have to apply for the funds. A lot of these funds have been put in place as a contingency measure. Many businesses now know that they exist. They may well decide not to apply for them until they have more certainty about the outcome of Brexit. Many small businesses, as the Deputy knows, are not going to trigger...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh (Atógáil) - Priority Questions (Resumed): Brexit Preparations (17 Sep 2019)

Simon Coveney: The one thing that has been a common thread throughout the Brexit negotiations for the last three years is that Ireland has not been left on her own. We have had extraordinary solidarity from other EU member states and from the EU institutions. That continues, as lately as yesterday, from President Juncker and the Luxembourg Prime Minister. Virtually every EU leader who speaks on Brexit...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh (Atógáil) - Priority Questions (Resumed): Middle East Issues (17 Sep 2019)

Simon Coveney: I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. It is something in which I have big personal interest. Promises made during the election campaign in Israel, including threats to annex lands in the West Bank, are irresponsible and have a damaging impact on the prospects for a peace agreement and an end to the conflict in that region. Unhelpful election rhetoric is not unique to Israel, and...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh (Atógáil) - Priority Questions (Resumed) (17 Sep 2019)

Simon Coveney: I welcome our friends from Colombia. The Minister formally opened the new Colombian embassy in Dublin yesterday and we opened an embassy in Bogota in the past 12 months. The relationship between our two countries is closer than ever before. The Minister is very welcome. I look forward to visiting Colombia, hopefully at some point in the next six to nine months. Deputy Crowe is correct...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh (Atógáil) - Priority Questions (Resumed): Brexit Preparations (17 Sep 2019)

Simon Coveney: No-deal planning has the highest priority across Government. As stated earlier, we have been actively preparing for Brexit in order to ensure that citizens and businesses are as ready as possible for all scenarios. Our consistent message has been that a no-deal Brexit will have profound implications for Ireland on many levels. This is why we have published two comprehensive contingency...