Niall Ó Donnghaile (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Taoiseach. Gabhaim beannachtaí na Féile Bríde air.

As the Taoiseach delivered his address, I received a text message from my friend who is a rang a ceathair teacher in Bunscoil Bheann Mhadagáin in Béal Feirste, stating his class was making crossanna Bríde today and they want to send the Taoiseach one to put up above the door in his office. I will get that to him.

Before coming on to my main points, I reiterate the call from my colleague, Senator Lawless, a champion for the extension to all citizens of the franchise in presidential elections, for clarity from the Taoiseach in that regard and call on all the parties here present to stand by many of their own party policies, including the Taoiseach's own, and support an extension of the franchise in the planned referendum for 2019.

Many Senators have already referred to the issue of Brexit. Sinn Féin has given a cautious and qualified welcome to December's progress report on phase one of the negotiations on the agreement between the EU and the British Government. The phase one agreement does not set the final deal on Brexit. While it recognises the unique and special circumstances surrounding the issue of the Irish peace process, the Good Friday Agreement and the Border, it does not address key areas of concern for many citizens, especially nationalists living in the North and citizens in the Border region. The insistence by the British Prime Minister, Ms Theresa May, that the UK must leave the Single Market and customs union contradicts her claim that there will not be a hard economic border. It gives no relief for citizens here on the future role of the European Court of Justice, in particular, the right of EU citizens in my part of the island to be able to access the EU institutions. These are all genuine concerns. Expanding on some of the issues that Senator Mark Daly raised, I would ask the Taoiseach what our citizenship means beyond the holding of an Irish passport. What are our rights and entitlements as EU, but in the first instance Irish, citizens beyond the holding of that passport?

Many Senators will be familiar with the case of Mr. Aidan McAnespie who was shot and murdered by a British soldier who was located in a sangar, on his way to watch his local Gaelic athletic club play in Aghaloo. His death caused widespread anger, and in an unusual move at the time, the Irish Government appointed then Garda deputy commissioner, the late Mr. Eugene Crowley, to investigate the killing. However, the findings of the deputy commissioner's report have never been made public. Speaking during the week, Tyrone GAA legend Peter Canavan urged the GAA to put pressure on the Irish Government to release this report. I am sure the Taoiseach will agree that neither the GAA nor the McAnespie family should have to bring such pressure to bear. Mr. Canavan stated, "it's hard to believe that it's Dublin we are waiting on and as I say bad and all as Aidan's death was I think what has confounded the situation is the cover up and some of the things that happened after it". Mr McAnespie's brother, Seán, said it is very important that the Irish government hand over the Crowley report, stating, "It's one more step to get to the truth, there might be stuff in there that could bring a conviction." I call on the Taoiseach to give a commitment to the McAnespie family, in the first instance to meet them, and also that the Government, more than 30 years after Aidan's brutal murder, will release that report.

Finally, and similar to the previous issue, would the Taoiseach agree, given this week's horrific details of collusion in the cases of the loyalist serial killer, Mr. Gary Haggarty and, indeed, the experience of the Loughinisland massacre families recently, that the Taoiseach needs to reiterate his support for the legacy provisions in the Stormont House Agreement to be implemented without further delay? If that is indeed the case, as the Taoiseach has stated previously, then it makes perfect sense that he, on behalf of the Government, would release the Crowley report as well.