Victor Boyhan (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Fleming, to the debate and I thank the Tánaiste for his further comprehensive presentation to us today. Before I discuss Northern Ireland specifically, I want to touch on the Irish-British relationship, which is an important one. I acknowledge the Government's commitment to east-west ties in opening consulates in Cardiff and Manchester post Brexit. That was the right thing to do and was an important move. I thank the Government, particularly the Minister for Foreign Affairs in recent years, for building up a team in the Irish Embassy in London, which is another important aspect of the Irish-British relationship.

I also welcome the bilateral frameworks in place between Scotland and Wales. This week, I travelled to the British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly, BIPA, of which I am a member. It is very clear from talking to our Scottish and Welsh counterparts that they value the framework that particular relationship, which is growing stronger and stronger. That is something I took away very strongly from our discussions at BIPA. I acknowledge also the exceptionally helpful briefing we had from the Department of Foreign Affairs and I convey my thanks to the staff in the Department.

In May last, the Government approved a major investment in the first Ireland House in London, again another Irish-British relationship which will bring together the Embassy of Ireland, Bord Bia, Enterprise Ireland and IDA Ireland under one roof. That is to be welcomed. It is a measure of the important economic relationship and vision that we have and of our intent to work in partnership in a proactive way to the benefit of all the people on the island of Ireland. I sometimes think we get lost in all of that. There are other aspects to it. The economic partnership will build long-lasting bridges of prosperity. While we need peace, we also need prosperity for the island of Ireland to thrive. It is important that I acknowledge that.

Last Thursday, I attended the shared island climate action conference under the shared island initiative involving Armagh city, Banbridge and Craigavon councils, along with Galway County Council and Leitrim County Council. It was hosted by Teagasc at its campus in Athenry in County Galway. It gives a clear indication that the shared island initiative is building bridges and delivering results. I commend the Department, in particular the Tánaiste, on its commitment in driving this initiative. It was the Tánaiste's idea and it is a good one. Again, we talked about North-South cross-Border projects relating to agri-tourism, enterprise and energy. There was significant buy-in from the councils as part of that all-island initiative. Again, we are building relationships and friendships and, ultimately, trust and respect. That also feeds into the North-South and British-Irish relationships which need to be peaceful and prosperous.

As the Tánaiste mentioned, the US Special Envoy to Northern Ireland on Economic Affairs, Joseph Kennedy, is currently in Ireland leading a US investment delegation to Northern Ireland. The significance and importance of this intervention cannot be understated. I like the Tánaiste's line that when we deliver stability, we will deliver enterprise. That is the key message from business in Northern Ireland. The recurring message at the BIPA meeting in Kildare earlier this week was that if we deliver stability, we will deliver for enterprise and business. That is the clear message coming from businesses in Northern Ireland.

As I said, I am a member of the British Irish Parliamentary Assembly. I ask the Government and the Department to continue to explore its enormous potential, which is not being maximised. It is not being fully used. It needs additional resources and it needs time and more imaginative collaboration between the BIPA jurisdictions, including Scotland and Wales, which are exceptionally important strands to our relationship. I ask the Department to consider that.

Over the past three days, BIPA considered many issues. While I will not go into them, I can say that the issue of the British Government's Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act, which received royal assent on 18 September, was a major concern. It was raised by many people on the floor of the BIPA meetings. I understand the Irish Government is now considering the next steps for this Act and the Tánaiste spoke about that to us tonight. It is clear that the Government's approach to legacy and reconciliation is that they should be human rights compliant and victims centred, taking, of course, the Stormont House Agreement as a starting point. Again, I support that approach.

The Irish Government has made clear to the UK Government its strong opposition to the Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act.There is universal opposition, or virtually universal opposition, on this island to the legislation. I have never seen anything that has united more people on more sides than this issue, and that is an important point for the Government to take on board. The five main political parties in Northern Ireland, survivors, victims' families, victims' groups, civil society, the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission and the Government of Ireland oppose the British Government's unilateral action on this issue. It is the view of the Irish Government that this Act is not fit for purpose. It is not compliant with Article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights.

In January a bipartisan group of the US Congress wrote to Prime Minister Sunak expressing its strong opposition to this legislation. On 15 May, US Congressmen Bill Keating and Brian Fitzpatrick wrote to the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland to express their grave concerns about the legislation. In addition, the Council of Europe's Committee of Ministers has adopted six decisions since the introduction of the Bill which express concerns about compatibility with the European Court of Human Rights. The committee urged the UK to reconsider the immunity provisions of the legislation. Many groups representing victims have called on the Irish Government to initiate an interstate case before the European Court of Human Rights in respect of the UK legacy Act. I support that call. It is an important one. I know the Government is considering the matter but it is important that it keep the Houses of the Oireachtas informed of what is happening. Time will run out and we need a decisive, clear indication of the Government's commitment to take the case. It is an important one and one that people expect.

I thank the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Department officials for their proactive engagement. The British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly and its potential should be expanded because it is doing good work. More importantly, we should continue on the road of the all-island initiative. It is an important one, and I believe it can expand and we can grow our relationships in peace and economics and, eventually, in trust. That is so important in this process.