Seanad debates

Monday, 10 May 2021

Good Friday Agreement: Motion

 

10:30 am

Photo of Niall BlaneyNiall Blaney (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

At the start of the debate, I omitted to welcome the Minister of State to the House. He is very welcome and I thank him for his very considered contribution. I thank all Members for what was a very good and open debate. I admit that it was particularly challenging for Senator Ó Donnghaile, but I appreciate how he takes it on the chin. I will return to his remarks in a moment.

It is great that this is one of the first debates we have had in the House on Northern Ireland and I hope we have many more. We could talk all day about it.

It was remiss of me not to say that Senator McDowell was one of the architects of the Good Friday Agreement as part of the Administration of Bertie Ahern. Great work was done both by him, as Taoiseach, and by Tony Blair, as British Prime Minister. Their input was enormous, as was that from the US Administration. That work is to be admired as well as the input from the Senator and the experience he brought to the table.I feel for many people. The big thing for them is the truth. Many people have spent decades waiting and hoping for the truth and it has destroyed their lives. They are hoping to see justice for their loved ones before they take their last breath. With that in mind, the truth element for me is the most important one. This is a debate which Senator McDowell has opened and might not be welcomed everywhere but it was a point well made at the start of this debate.

I welcome the constructive manner in which Senator Mullen took his amendment here today. I am someone who will call out positivity and negativity as I feel fit. That is why I do not have my speech today. When I referred to remarks on a border poll, I was speaking about some of the Senator’s earlier remarks at a meeting of the Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement, where there were calls for such a poll within a couple of years. I took him up then and I take him up now on the issue of a rushed border poll. As several Senators have mentioned today, it cannot be rushed. A significant amount of work needs to go on behind the scenes, including by the Government.

Covid-19 is an issue and a stumbling block. We must recognise that, but there must be face-to-face discussions. That cannot be done at the moment, which is a bit of problem. A border poll cannot be rushed or done on timelines.

The former MLA, Martin McGuinness, was also mentioned. For me, Martin McGuinness was someone that evolved in the republican status. The move he made and the works he did alongside Ian Paisley, some of which were excellent, have been rightly referred to. Many people within Sinn Féin could look at what he did during that time, how he evolved and how he stepped across the way and gave the open hand to many people of the Protestant faith, including church leaders. He was involved in taking down the administration, but for me that was at a time of ill health. My personal belief is that if he had his full wits about him, that would not have happened because it damaged his legacy. I commend the years of work he put in.

I will offer the rest of my time to my colleague. The Cathaoirleach might give her a few extra minutes because I had intended halving my speaking time.

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