Niall Ó Donnghaile (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire as ucht a bheith linn inniu, go háirithe ag an am tábhachtach agus criticiúil seo fá choinne ní hamháin na sé chontae ach an t-oileán ina iomlán. I thank the Minister for joining us today. We all acknowledge that this is a critical time not just for the North but, given the triggering of Article 50, for the island in its entirety. I wish to deal with two elements of the Minister's statement: the current conclusion of negotiations in the North and the issue of Brexit. I take great heart from the clarity of the Minister's words and his statement today.I have been following the Minister's public utterances and those of his colleagues in Government. I read his platform piece in the Irish Newsyesterday or the day before. In light of all that and given the severity of the issues we are dealing with in the North, what we need to do now is go beyond words and start to find ourselves in a place of action.

My colleagues are right that we need to deal with the outstanding issues, some of which have been identified. An Irish language Act was signed up to, agreed and committed to at St. Andrew's over ten years ago. A Bill of Rights was signed up to and agreed at the Good Friday Agreement almost 20 years ago. That agreement and all aspects of it were overwhelmingly endorsed by the democratic mandate of people in this State and the North. There is a huge onus on us to see the implementation of the agreements in their fullest. I do not need to tell the Minister that one of the main points of contention in recent times has been the issue of legacy. Instead of hearing about James Brokenshire and his role as some kind of mediator or arbitrator, we need to identify the British Government as players in these negotiations. I am sure the Minister will agree with us on the need for an Irish language Act and the need to respect each other's cultural traditions and identities. We also need to acknowledge and shine a light on the very negative role the British Government is actively playing in these negotiations to hinder progress on the Stormont House and Fresh Start agreements. The legacy elements were agreed there. The British Government is actively hindering progress on those issues, not least through the unwillingness of the Secretary of State to release the funds for legacy inquests. We need to start hearing more about what actions the Irish Government, as co-guarantors of those agreements, will take as opposed to words.

Does the Irish Government want to see the implementation of an Irish language Act? What is it doing as co-guarantors to make that come about? I read with interest the Minister's recent contribution to the Pat Finucane memorial lecture in Belfast which was a very positive and worthwhile intervention on the Minister's behalf. Does the Minister agree the British Government is not acting impartially in these negotiations? The onus is on the British Government to move proactively to bring a conclusion to the outstanding issues of legacy and to release the much needed funding for legacy inquests, which the Lord Chief Justice has asked them to do very clearly on the public record.

On Brexit, the Minister said in his contribution that nothing can be allowed to undermine the peace process which, founded on the Good Friday Agreement, has brought us definitively beyond the horror of the Troubles. I agree wholeheartedly with the Minister. Many people would put forward the argument that it is too late and that Brexit has done exactly that. It is not just me or people on this island who think that. Earlier I read the European Parliament's constitutional affairs committee's report into Brexit. On page 41 of that report, it states, "The impact [of Brexit] will be both political, in particular since the Good Friday Agreement - an international agreement - will require alteration". That which the Minister is calling for not to happen, the European Parliament contests has already happened. My question in terms of other issues applies to that. What will the Irish Government do? I offer a suggestion that has already been articulated by Senator Daly. It is one which the Minister is mandated to seek by the Dáil, which in February passed a motion compelling the Government to make the case for special designated status for the North.

I appreciate we are tight for time. I have put a number of questions to the Minister. I could probably put about 100 more. The Minister has engaged regularly with this House. I look forward to him coming back in to us again.