Victor Boyhan (Independent)

I call for a debate on the diaspora. This morning, a number of Senators, including the Cathaoirleach, attended Iveagh House at the invitation of the Minister of State, Deputy Richmond. It was a very important exchange and dialogue with the Secretary General and a number of officials from his Department in relation to the Irish diaspora in its very broadest sense. The current strategy runs out at the end of this year and the Minister of State impressed upon us all that we should tap into our own political, business and personal networks and talk about the Irish diaspora. I contributed to that debate and engaged on the basis that many of the people who left this country did so in the hope of returning, many people were forced out of this country in the hope of never returning, and many who left hoped that one day they would have a new opportunity. That was one leg of our debate and discussion. We also touched on the rich tapestry of sport, the GAA, our culture and arts, which unites a lot of people. The GAA in particular and the arts and cultural sectors have done a lot for the Irish diaspora. That is the really positive side.

The Minister of State is engaging on a tour and is committed to travelling around Europe, Canada, America and Australia to promote this strategy. It occurred to me as I was walking back from Iveagh House this morning that it would be helpful, as the Minister of State did today, if he gave the House a walk through of his ideas and suggestions. It is better to feed into and make contributions on this side of a strategy rather than to be at the end of one.

I want to acknowledge the important and significant contribution the Cathaoirleach made to the proceedings in Iveagh House this morning and believe it is important to set aside some time to hear about the Minister of State's vision and plan. We could also learn about some of the outgoing issues of the current strategy, which runs out at the end of this year. We should work together on a cross-party basis to feed into the strategy for the Irish diaspora. I call for a debate and engagement with the Minister of State and I thank him and his officials for receiving us in Iveagh House this morning.