Lynn Boylan (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I am delighted to second the motion brought by my colleague, Senator Niall Ó Donnghaile and the rest of the Sinn Féin Senators. It is now seven years since the Brexit referendum which unleashed massive uncertainty. I was an MEP at the time and Sinn Féin vigorously campaigned against Brexit because we knew the ramifications of such a decision for the stability of this island. It is a decision that was recognised by the vast majority of people in the North when they voted against Brexit.

With the deal that has now been completed between the European Commission and the British Government, we finally have a means to protect the Good Friday Agreement and the all-Ireland economy, preventing a hard border and safeguarding continued access to the EU Single Market. That, of course, is very welcome. We have always said that Brexit and the Good Friday Agreement are incompatible. I remember at the time of the Brexit campaign, my colleague, Martina Anderson, left no door unknocked on in Brussels in bringing to the attention of every MEP, European Commissioner and anybody else who would listen to her, the ramifications that a vote for Brexit would have on the Good Friday Agreement. Thankfully, with the Windsor Framework, the most damaging elements of Brexit have been averted. Not only that, we now know that the North is in a unique position to attract investment. The dual access is the envy of many, including those in Scotland and Wales. Ironically, even Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who was a Brexiteer, has recognised the potential for the North of Ireland.

The vast majority of people, parties and businesses in the North support the protocol and want to see the economic opportunities of the competitive advantage maximised for people's benefit and the dual market access capitalised on. We have been consistent all along that a deal was possible, so long as people came to the negotiations in good faith. Unfortunately, that has not always been the case with British Prime Ministers, such as Boris Johnson and Liz Truss. Now at least we seem to have a more pragmatic leadership in 10 Downing Street. Negotiations have been able to conclude with compromise and agreement in the shape of the Windsor Framework.

The deal is done, and now is the time to get back into the Executive. We need an Assembly and an Executive to deal with the cost-of-living crisis, to challenge the sweeping Tory austerity agenda that is causing so much harm, as well as to deal with issues of public health, policing, justice and community safety along with issues of fundamental importance like environmental catastrophe and biodiversity breakdown. We all know there are no borders in climate change. There are no borders in habitats; wildlife does not recognise the Border. We have to address the issues of climate change and biodiversity crisis as an island. We need our Executive up and running to do so. The Assembly passed a climate Act around the same time as we passed a climate Act in the South. We have all seen how difficult it is with sectoral targets and the importance of having Oireachtas committee meetings so we can tease out the detail of how to reach those targets. However, the Executive is not up and running and cannot make decisions on tackling climate change.

As my colleague said, we are also about to embark on a celebration of the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement. It was an enormous achievement. It is something everyone involved in delivering should be very proud of. It is important to acknowledge the transformative impact it has had on life in Ireland, North and South.However, it is a travesty that the institutions of the Good Friday Agreement are not up and running. This motion is to bring attention to that and add the Seanad's voice that everybody now needs to be working to get the institutions back up and running. That means the Assembly, the Executive, the North-South Ministerial Council and the British-Irish Council.

In April, we are going to mark 25 years of transformative peace with the potential of a presidential visit by President Joe Biden. As the First Minister designate, Michelle O'Neill, said over the weekend, the eyes of the world are again on us and we want to showcase opportunity. We do not want to showcase further instability and dysfunction. There is a massive potential to promote the success of the Good Friday Agreement to the world and it would be detrimental to what could be achieved in this period by working together if that opportunity was let go by.

The Good Friday Agreement has come of age; society, politics and demographics in the North are changing. The agreement, for the first time in Irish history, gave people a peaceful and democratic pathway to a free and united Ireland and acknowledged that Britain's claim to a part of Ireland was conditional on the consent of a majority of the people. All around us we know that people are discussing what a new and agreed Ireland might look like. They are imagining something better for their society, whether that is from Kerry or Derry.All around us, people are discussing what a new and agreed Ireland might look like and imagining something better for our society, from Kerry to Derry. The Good Friday Agreement opens this path up to us and, as we navigate towards a new Ireland, the agreement’s bedrock of equality, human rights and justice will prevail.

As I said, I am proud to second this motion. I hope the Seanad will endorse it so we send out that very powerful message we need, which is that the Windsor Framework agreement is done and we now need to get those institutions back up and running. We need to send out that very positive message on the anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement.