Frank Feighan (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister here today on this very special day. I do not think most people realise that the Republic officially came into existence on this day 69 years ago. I suppose with every issue, there is always a counterbalance. That brought the Ireland Act 1949 to the House of Commons, which effectively recognised Northern Ireland. Some would say this drove partition or ensured that partition was even more divisive. One of the great days of my life was the signing of the Anglo-Irish Agreement in 1985. It was signed by Garret FitzGerald and the British Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, and I believe it paved the way for the Good Friday Agreement in 1998. It also ensured that the Republic of Ireland had an official consultative role in affairs in Northern Ireland and brought Ministers from the Irish and British Governments together for the first time since partition.

I have talked to many politicians who say that in the 1950s and 1960s, we effectively operated in our own little silos. There was a big island on the other side, and diplomatically and politically nothing happened. I acknowledge the Anglo-Irish Agreement had its critics but it gave us a role and a say in the affairs of Northern Ireland, and we are now in a much better place.

I was also in Belfast last week, and I must reiterate what Senator Boyhan said at The Goliath Trust gala in the Europa Hotel on Wednesday night. That organisation works hard to improve disadvantaged areas in Northern Ireland that are underachieving in education. Bertie Ahern summed it up. When he was asked for his opinion, he replied that those involved should stop the messing. Before a crowd of perhaps 500 people, he called on the two parties to do so. I understand that it is much more complex than that but he made that appeal. One could see there is a cohort in Northern Ireland that wants Stormont to set up again. To me it was an iconic moment.

Another iconic moment came the day before, when the Minister was at Queen's University in Belfast. We have come a long way, but I think Seamus Mallon sent out a signal when he said that unionism needs to breathe. He noted that at present, its adherents are angry and fearful but they need space to breathe. As a Parliament, with Brexit imminent, it would not be helpful for us to call for a Border poll. That is only my personal opinion.

From what I am hearing and what I see on the ground, we are in a much better place. I pay tribute to all the brave leaders of all the political parties, to the men and women in Northern Ireland, the island of Ireland, and the two islands who made a huge difference in the Anglo-Irish Agreement. There are a few difficulties we have to iron out but we are in a much better space than we were 20 years ago.

Brexit is bringing huge challenges to the Good Friday Agreement and its implementation. I still believe that the Irish border will be the Achilles' heel of Brexit. The people of Britain, rightly or wrongly, did not think of the Border issue or the island of Ireland when they were making deliberations on Brexit. These things happen in referendums. We have had 27 referendums in 27 years. People sometimes do not vote on the question that is put to them in referendums. They may not like the Government. It could be due to turf-cutting or water. In this case, it was immigration and the Irish Border did not come into play. I hope it will be the Achilles' heel for Brexit and that the British people will have a change of heart but I it poses huge challenges to the Anglo-Irish Agreement, which has been so successful for the last 20 years.

Finally, I note we are in a much better space. It is great that we can talk about all the good that has come out of the Good Friday Agreement and it is wonderful to see that the people of Ireland are united in one thing; that they want peace and a better future for the people coming behind them. As parliamentarians, we have a role to lead and to challenge the narratives but we are in a much better space.