Maurice Cummins (Fine Gael)

I welcome the Minister. I also welcome Senator Keaveney's remarks. While I remember Fianna Fáil policy in the 1970s and early 1980s, she is now espousing the policies we were espousing at that time. Fianna Fáil has come a long way, and I compliment it on the changes it has made in regard to Northern Ireland.

The Independent Members have an amendment to the motion, which I commend. I hope the Government will accept it as an all-party motion because Northern Ireland is an area where there has been all-party consensus in the past and we have agreed in many areas, which is only right. I hope this consensus will continue into the future and that we will witness the full implementation of the Good Friday Agreement and see communities, which were so divided, work together in a spirit of peace and reconciliation to build a greater quality of life for all people in Northern Ireland.

I welcome this opportunity to reflect on the recent achievements and the progress on the path to peace. Fine Gael welcomes the agreement reached between the parties in Northern Ireland on the devolution of justice and policing powers to the power-sharing institutions. It was the clear wish and hope of the vast majority of the people in Northern Ireland that this deal be reached. The positive outcome to the lengthy negotiations has averted the prospect of a prolonged period of instability and uncertainty. It required intensive efforts from each party and I compliment each party and both Governments for their efforts. I hope they have secured a complete and enduring agreement.

The challenge now for the parties is to work together to deliver on the implementation of the remaining elements of the Good Friday Agreement so the people of Northern Ireland can be convinced the political process can deliver real improvements to their lives. The Northern parties can be assured that Fine Gael will continue to play its part in supporting and assisting full implementation of the agreement. April 12 will be a historic and defining day in Northern Ireland. Fine Gael agrees with the Independent Monitoring Commission that the devolution of policing and justice powers brings important benefits to Northern Ireland, not least in allowing closer integration of law enforcement with other domestic policies in which it is involved.

The IMC also made the point that dissident groups tried to exploit the uncertainty on this issue and to argue that politics was not succeeding in Northern Ireland when the reality is very different. They have failed in their attempts to create a divide. With regard to the position of Minister for Justice, I am confident that the First Minister and Deputy First Minister will find a strong candidate who will be acceptable to all shades of opinion, as would be everybody's wish.

Fine Gael, as always, stands ready to support the forces of law and order in confronting the threat of dissident republicans. The Government will have the full support of the party in regard to whatever action is necessary to take these terrorists out of society as they pose a serious threat to this State. As I stated on the Order of Business some weeks ago, I am deeply concerned at reports that the Real IRA is actively recruiting new members from this jurisdiction. I heard this said on a number of occasions in regard to a number of counties. It is of paramount importance that young men and women are not lured into these organisations by some romantic notion of Irish republicanism and the continuation of an armed struggle. It is essential that people understand and see that co-operation and power sharing are the only show in town and form the normal and effective way of delivering for everybody.

We must ensure the Army and the Garda Síochána have the necessary resources to monitor the activities of these dissident groups in this State. A concentrated effort to disrupt their recruitment methods and other activities will prevent the atrocities in which these groups have been and are engaged.

Senator Keaveney referred to the recent absolutely despicable attack on Mr. Peadar Heffron, a man fluent in the Irish language and involved in playing Gaelic games. Irrespective of whether he speaks Irish or plays Gaelic games, these types of attacks on the PSNI are despicable and should be a thing of the past. We in this jurisdiction must do everything we can to ensure the perpetrators of these acts are dealt with at every possible opportunity should they try to take refuge in this State.

When speaking about Northern Ireland, it would be remiss of me not to pay tribute to the former leader of the SDLP, Mr. Mark Durkan, whose fearless leadership of the SDLP not alone benefited his party, but, more importantly, benefited all the people of Northern Ireland. I was delighted to meet Ms Margaret Ritchie earlier who was present in the House at 5 p.m. when this debate was due to commence. My party leader and several Front Bench members attended the SDLP conference last Saturday-week. Ms Ritchie's appointment comes at a critical time for politics in Northern Ireland. I wish her well in the future.

It is essential that this House is kept abreast of developments in the North-South Ministerial Council, as proposed in the amendment tabled by the Independent Senators. This is the least we can expect. It is hoped the Leader of the House will ensure this happens regularly.

Another positive step in the path to peace in Northern Ireland came with the announcement by the INLA, the Official IRA and the east Antrim brigade of the Ulster Defence Association that they have put their weapons beyond use. The completion of the decommissioning process removes a key obstacle to political progress in Northern Ireland and fulfils the clearly expressed democratic wish of the Irish people, North and South, when they endorsed the Good Friday Agreement in 1998.

I compliment the Minister on his efforts in this regard. I know he put many long hours into the process. He will have the support of Fine Gael in progressing the Good Friday Agreement and tackling the situation of dissident republicanism which I believe is a threat to this State at this time.