Results 11,781-11,800 of 40,897 for speaker:Simon Coveney

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Brexit Issues (4 Oct 2018)

Simon Coveney: Brexit is a priority issue for this Government, and the Taoiseach, my cabinet colleagues and I have taken every opportunity to engage with EU partners and the UK to advance Ireland’s priorities. I, as well as officials from my Department, remain in ongoing contact with representatives from EU Member States, the Commission and Task Force, and the UK. Monthly meetings of the...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Middle East Issues (4 Oct 2018)

Simon Coveney: Ireland has strongly supported efforts in the EU and the OECD to promote the accountability, transparency and effective management of natural resources. In particular, Ireland supports the EU regulation on conflict minerals. The Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation leads on this area in coordination with the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources. The...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Middle East Issues (4 Oct 2018)

Simon Coveney: I am extremely worried about the imminent threat to the Bedouin community of Khan al Ahmar, which we have discussed here on many occasions. The notice to residents to demolish their own structures by 1 October or face enforced demolition clearly indicates that Israel is intent on carrying out this reprehensible action. These villagers have already been expelled once from their original...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: United Nations (4 Oct 2018)

Simon Coveney: The 73rdsession of the UN General Assembly got underway in early September. The theme for this year’s General Debate which took place from 25 September-1 October was "Making the United Nations relevant to all people: global leadership and shared responsibilities for peaceful, equitable and sustainable societies”. I delivered Ireland’s National Statement to the General...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Brexit Negotiations (4 Oct 2018)

Simon Coveney: The European Commission’s proposals on the ‘backstop’ are set out in the Draft Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland, which forms part of the overall draft Withdrawal Agreement published in February. It is available on the European Commission’s website and on the Government’s Brexit website. This draft text serves as the basis on which negotiations have...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Passport Services (4 Oct 2018)

Simon Coveney: The Passport Service is composed of 3 constituent offices located in Mount Street, Dublin, Balbriggan, County Dublin and South Mall, Cork. The Passport Service is one unified service. The distribution of work across the 3 passport offices does not in any way or limit the options available to the public in terms of passport application channels or reduce the quality of service provided. ...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Brexit Issues (4 Oct 2018)

Simon Coveney: The Government’s contingency planning for Brexit has from the start included issues relating to the continued effective use of the UK landbridge. This is a priority for the Government given its importance in getting Irish products to market on continental Europe, in particular with regard to agri-food products. This is an important issue with regard to protecting the competitiveness of...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Human Rights (4 Oct 2018)

Simon Coveney: Under Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion. I am aware of the oppression faced by Ahmadiyya community in Pakistan, and I very strongly condemn the violence that the community faces. Ireland strongly condemns all forms of persecution on the basis of religion or belief, irrespective of where they occur...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Overseas Development Aid Expenditure (4 Oct 2018)

Simon Coveney: In June 2018 the Taoiseach launched Global Ireland, a plan to double Ireland’s global impact by 2025. Amongst other things, in Global Ireland the Government committed to publishing a White Paper on Ireland’s International Development Cooperation and to delivering 0.7% of GNI to Overseas Development Assistance by 2030. The public consultation for the new international...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Human Rights (4 Oct 2018)

Simon Coveney: The Report of the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission (IIFFM) on Myanmar makes for harrowing reading. Ireland has strongly supported the mandate of the IIFFM since it was established in March 2017 and I offer my thanks to them for their work and for this report. The findings of the IIFFM corroborate many of the eyewitness accounts which have emerged from Myanmar in recent...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Irish Prisoners Abroad (4 Oct 2018)

Simon Coveney: Officials at the Irish Embassy in Athens have been in direct contact with the family of the individual in question, and with the German authorities, since we were made aware of his detention. As the individual detained is a German citizen, the German authorities are the competent authority under the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations to provide assistance to this individual. Officials...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: UN Resolutions (4 Oct 2018)

Simon Coveney: On 22 June 2017, the UN General Assembly voted on a Resolution put forward by Mauritius to seek an advisory opinion from the ICJ on the legal consequences of the separation of the Chagos Archipelago from Mauritius in 1965, prior to Mauritian independence from the UK. Public hearings on this matter commenced before the ICJ at The Hague in early September where twenty-two States and the...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Dublin-Monaghan Bombings (4 Oct 2018)

Simon Coveney: The implementation of the All-Party Dáil motions relating to the Dublin and Monaghan bombings is a priority for the Government, as highlighted in the Programme for a Partnership Government. The All-Party motion on the 1974 Dublin Monaghan bombings adopted by the Dáil on 25 May 2016 has, like those adopted in 2008 and 2011, been conveyed to the British Government. These motions...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Foreign Conflicts (4 Oct 2018)

Simon Coveney: I propose to take Questions Nos. 26 and 30 together. As stated in this House and elsewhere, I remain extremely concerned about the situation in Yemen, the suffering of civilians there, and the humanitarian crisis which the war has triggered. Yemen is the world’s largest humanitarian crisis, with over twenty million people in need of assistance due to drought and the disruptions...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: International Sanctions Application (4 Oct 2018)

Simon Coveney: My Government colleagues and I have been working closely with an Irish based plant to deal with issues related to US imposed sanctions on named Russian individuals and companies in the last number of months. While the rationale for the sanctions in question is fully understood, they have unfortunately and inadvertently had the effect of jeopardising a major employer in Ireland and, if a...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: UN Environmental Programme (4 Oct 2018)

Simon Coveney: I strongly welcome the recent release of the important report on Single Use Plastics by the United Nations Environment Programme. This report is the first comprehensive global assessment of government action, and includes a helpful ten-step roadmap for governments in addressing plastic waste. I am particularly pleased that the report singles Ireland out as an example of best practice, as...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Human Rights (4 Oct 2018)

Simon Coveney: At the Human Rights Council in September 2017, Ireland was part of a small core group of countries that drove forward the adoption by consensus of a Resolution establishing a Group of Eminent Experts (GEE) on Yemen. The mandate of this group was to carry out investigations into all alleged violations of human rights and international humanitarian law by all warring parties in Yemen. The GEE...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Human Rights (4 Oct 2018)

Simon Coveney: I am aware of reports of increasing harassment and detention of members of the Baha’i community in Yemen on account of their faith. I am also aware of the specific case referred to by the Deputy, of a Baha’i individual who has been sentenced to death by the Houthi de facto authorities. While we do not have all the details of the case, I am concerned that this person appears to...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: EU Issues (4 Oct 2018)

Simon Coveney: On 12 September 2018, the European Parliament, under A7 of the Treaty on European Union, adopted a reasoned proposal to the Council, inviting the Council to determine whether there is a clear risk of a serious breach by Hungary of the values on which the European Union is founded. The President of the European Parliament formally communicated this proposal to the President of the Council of...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Northern Ireland (4 Oct 2018)

Simon Coveney: I propose to take Questions Nos. 36 and 44 together. Dealing with outstanding issues relating to the legacy of the Troubles is of the utmost importance to the Government. The Programme for a Partnership Government commits to building on the progress made to establish the comprehensive institutional framework for dealing with the past that is provided for under the 2014 Stormont House...