Paul Bradford (Fine Gael)

While my time is limited, I am pleased to have an opportunity to say a few words on this important issue. I concur with Senator Mansergh that we would need more time for these debates so that the maximum number of Senators can contribute.

We must try to measure progress in Northern Ireland in a different way from what one would do if we were discussing political progress in the Republic of Ireland. We must remember where we are coming from. Every day that passes without a bullet being fired, a bomb exploding, a knee-capping taking place or a community being terrorised in Northern Ireland is a day of progress. It may not be the total progress we hope to achieve but it is progress when there is some degree of normality.

Senator Ryan referred earlier to the debates in the Oireachtas in the early 1980s — I was here in the late 1980s. When we spoke about Northern Ireland, we could only speak one language, that of condemnation. It was proper condemnation of what was the most recent atrocity. Thankfully, we have moved on. Sometimes we believe that a so-called permanent and final solution is just around the corner and must be achieved. I pose the question that the final agreement to which everybody aspires, and people might have different versions of that, could well be beyond the current crop of politicians and generation of people on this island. We must remember from where we have come — the dreadful days and times and the dreadful bitterness and division. If we could ensure the communities across the country and the counties of Northern Ireland co-operate and work together, that would be a major step forward.

I welcome Senator Quinn's comments on projects as simple but as important as tourism, the need to encourage those involved in the industry to meet and people in the Republic, in particular, to visit Northern Ireland on a more frequent basis. I posed the following questions to members attending various political meetings in my constituency on many occasions. I asked how many of them had been in Britain, to which the response was 100%; how many of them had been in the United States, to which the response was 70% or 80%; and how many of them had been in Northern Ireland, to which the response was only 50% at most. Some people have a mental barrier to visiting Northern Ireland and we must work on that. The "them and us" mental barrier is part of the physical barrier whereby contacts between people and communities break down.

The economic issues briefly referred to must be addressed. The state of the Northern Ireland economy is one that will pose a threat to every community in Northern Ireland. We must play a role in painting a picture of that economy.

I welcome yesterday's report of the IMC. It indicates that positive steps continue to be taken. It rightly refers to an issue from which we cannot move away, namely, criminality. One form of violence within or against the community cannot be replaced by another form of violence. It is important that our Government remains vigilant. I concur with Senator Mansergh that the actions of the Garda and the State over the past 12 months indicate a strong Government response, and that response must be maintained and be even more vigilant.

On the issue of policing, I concur with what every Senator who referred to it said, namely, that if Sinn Féin wishes to view itself as a fully-fledged democratic party, it must not only be willing to support policing but willing to take part in the arrangements. There is no excuse for Sinn Féin remaining outside the policing arrangements. We look for signals of trust and goodwill from all those on all sides of the equation from time to time. The strongest signal of trust and goodwill Sinn Féin could deliver to the community would be to involve itself as a political party in the policing process. A normal civilised democratic society needs a democratic police force. Major progress has been made in regard to policing in Northern Ireland. The final part of the jigsaw is the involvement of Sinn Féin and there is no excuse for it delaying that any further.

I hope progress can be made in the restoration of the political institutions. Reflecting on what happened within the administration while it existed, while the structure was weak and progress was slow at the start, there was great co-operation between the parties. It had a dynamic which must be reinstated, built on and maintained.

We all know from our dealings with people across the communities in Northern Ireland that the political parties are well behind public opinion on this issue. The people of Northern Ireland, regardless of their political persuasion, want their political parties to take part in the decision-making process. They want decisions to be made not in London but in their own home territory. They want their political parties to argue their case across the table in Northern Ireland and not to be beholden to a decision by the British Government. I appeal to the political parties to ensure that, in their dialogue and involvement with the British and Ireland Governments over the next number of weeks and months, they show generosity. That is required from the political parties. Generosity is offered by the communities and the ordinary people, a phrase I do not like to use, in Northern Ireland, but they demand leadership from their politicians which is not forthcoming.

There are many other issues to which I would have liked to refer. I congratulate the Minster and the Government on their ongoing efforts. They have the support of the Oireachtas. This is big political project. I do not believe it is imperative that in five, ten or 15 years' time we have a so-called permanent answer to the puzzle of Northern Ireland and the bigger puzzle of the island of Ireland. We need to ensure that the people are being governed in a fair fashion with democratic control in a free and a peaceful society. That would represent great progress for this generation.

There was reference to the First World War on the Order of Business. During the past 50 or 60 years some people from this island spilled their blood. Now that we have stopped that from happening we can bed down democracy and civil discourse between people and political parties. That would be great progress. If in 25, 30 or 40 years' time someone wants to present a new political project, that would be fine. However, we need to get the institutions up and running and to keep people talking and working together.