Mark Daly (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for attending. The North is close to his constituency.

The lack of engagement by the two Governments is the reason there is an impasse. There were attempts, in dealing with the past and flags, to come up with a solution. The US Government became involved in dealing with certain issues and there were failed talks, but there was no substantive engagement. There was some, but there is a need for high level engagement by the Prime Minister and the Taoiseach to resolve the issues involved. However, that is not really what is of concern to the citizens of Northern Ireland; what are of concern to them are the issues that affect their daily lives, including the cuts to social welfare and services and the block grant in the North proposed by the Tory Government.

To a large degree, the issue that is causing the collapse of the structures in the North is being used by both sides to get away from what affects people in their daily lives in the North. That is a consequence of the Stormont House Agreement. Now we have a political crisis, largely created by politicians for their own ends, and the ordinary citizen in the North is concerned. Catholics, Protestants, Unionists and Nationalists are concerned about the cuts coming their way, yet politics has failed them in that regard in that there has been no engagement.

I agree with my colleagues that the North is a special case in respect of the block grant. I acknowledge the argument being made by Tory MPs that the North is receiving more proportionately than Scotland and Wales, but I do not really care because the North is a special case. If we want a peace dividend, we need to invest more.

On the issues of dealing with the past, parades and flags, the engagement by the British Government has been appalling. It has refused to hand over the files on the Dublin–Monaghan bombings, the largest bombing and biggest mass murder in the history of the State. The bombings happened not one mile from Leinster House. The report of Mr. Justice Barron is quite clear and unequivocal in stating the bombings could not have happened without the assistance of the British Army and security forces. One in three of the deaths in the North was caused by loyalist paramilitaries with the assistance of the British security forces. That is the past, but we cannot move forward until the British Government agrees to hand over the files. However, that will not break the impasse because the real issue is that the Stormont House Agreement was going to cause political problems for all parties in the North. The British Government needs to give more funding because whatever funding it will have to give to solve the problems associated with the proposed social welfare cuts will be nothing by comparison with the cost that would be incurred if there were to be a resurgence of paramilitary activity and a reignition of the Troubles. We are asking the Taoiseach and the Prime Minister to become involved at the highest level and for the renegotiation of the Stormont House Agreement. The immediate issue concerning the IRA must be examined, but a solution is possible.

What is occurring has been used by all sides to try to distract from the real issues affecting the day-to-day lives of citizens in the North and the need to improve their lives and ensure they can go about their normal business. Most of what is happening is, to a large degree, being used for political purposes. Long-term, sustained engagement by the Prime Minister and the Taoiseach, not just engagement when there is a crisis, is required if we are to have the solutions required to keep the peace in the North. Dealing with the past, flags and parades is part of this process, but the Stormont House Agreement needs to be addressed. Whatever funding is required from the British Exchequer to ensure the stability we have witnessed in recent years is maintained is a matter the Government needs to pursue.