Dominic Hannigan (Labour)

I thank Senator Alex White for providing me with 180 seconds from his time slot. I compliment the Minister for Foreign Affairs on the fine work he did over recent weeks to ensure this agreement occurred. I met the various leaders in Stormont in December and appreciate the personal journey many of them went on to reach this agreement and recognise the difficulties they faced. It is certainly another step on the road to a long and lasting peace.

It cannot, however, be taken for granted. Many Members will have seen last night's "Prime Time" which contained interviews with various dissident republican groups. There is still an element that will try to wreck this peace so none of us can rest on our laurels. Further work is needed to ensure peace remains.

Difficulties with parades and policing must be faced. We must examine the issue of how the Northern Ireland Executive is formed and the existing d'Hondt mechanism that ensures it fairly represents the number of seats each party has. By and large it works well but there is a deficit in SDLP representation on the Executive. I pay tribute to the SDLP's former leader, Mark Durkan, for his sterling work during his tenure.

We must examine how we can deepen the links between North and South. In the tourism sector, there is the potential to attract visitors from the North to the South. In County Meath each year more than 100,000 people from the North visit the Battle of the Boyne site and others such as Newgrange. With peace on the island it will be easier to sell international tourism. I recall when in the United States 20 years ago people refused to visit Ireland because all they knew of it was that it was, in their words, a battle zone. It is to be hoped the long and lasting peace will ensure more tourists come north and south of the Border.

We must consider a deepening of our joint development of green energy, especially wind energy and wave power. We are an island nation and we have an excellent coastline. We must consider ways to ensure North and South can avail of any green jobs that materialise. I welcome the recent agreement and I support the amendment tabled by the Independent Senators.