Kathryn Reilly (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

In an article in today's edition of The Irish Times, the Minister of State, Deputy Dara Murphy, who has responsibility for data protection, was asked - I think it was before the recess - about the revelations by leaked documents from whistleblower Edward Snowden that the British spy agency, GCHQ, routinely spied on Irish communications passing over the major subsea telecommunications cables that link Ireland and Britain. This in itself was highlighted by a number of groups such as Digital Rights Ireland as mass surveillance given that essentially every transmission by the Internet in Ireland has been monitored. When asked about this the Minister of State said the Government had not made any comment and was not going to make any comment.

That is an outrage. This is a serious issue. We do not want this issue swept under the carpet with no Government comment. I raised this issue before the recess and it was raised as a matter on the Adjournment with the Minister for Justice and Equality who stressed the role of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in bilateral relations. A letter from the Secretary General of that Department to the Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs stated that it was generally understood that friendly relationships between the states, including between Ireland and Britain, include acceptance of the principle that the privacy of communications must be respected. Essentially what these revelations show is that the principle of privacy of communications was violated. Therefore, it is important that we get some further comment on this issue. I do not think that what is attributed to the Minister of State in The Irish Times is adequate. I support calls for the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Deputy Charles Flanagan, to come before the House to discuss this issue in terms of the bilateral relationship between Ireland and Britain, to outline what discussions are taking place and whether the Government will make further comment on the fact that this mass surveillance is taking place.