Trevor Sargent (Dublin North, Green Party)
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Question 107: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs the actions his Department has taken following Trócaire's call for increased efforts by the Government to bring about an end to child labour in developing countries; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13100/06]

Conor Lenihan (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)
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Ireland is strongly supportive of international standards and norms to combat all forms of slavery, including child labour. During our Presidency of the European Union, Ireland made a statement on behalf of the EU at the Commission on Human Rights on contemporary forms of slavery, which strongly condemned child labour. Ireland and the EU have also raised this important issue at meetings of the UN Commission on Human Rights.

The Government supports the work of the International Labour Organisation, which is the main United Nations agency dealing with the issue of bonded labour. The ILO seeks to improve working and living conditions through the adoption of international labour conventions and recommendations setting minimum standards in such fields as wages, hours of work and conditions of employment. It is a unique agency in the UN system, given its tripartite structure comprising representatives of governments, employer groups and worker groups. The ILO's work on bonded labour and child-bonded labour takes place in its framework of international labour standards, which are international legal instruments. The ILO has played a critical role in highlighting the plight of more than 246 million children in child labour and has sought to tackle this issue through its international programme on the elimination of child labour. Ireland was elected as a deputy member of the ILO governing body for a three-year term in June 2005.

The Government, through Irish Aid, supports the ILO special action programme to combat forced labour. Government funding for this programme from 2003 to 2006 will amount to €1.6 million. The programme tackles issues of bonded labour in Asia, forced labour and human trafficking in Europe and forced labour among indigenous peoples in Latin America. The programme has had considerable impact worldwide in galvanising international action on forced labour. Ireland also supports civil society efforts to end child labour. Trócaire is a key partner in the Government's aid programme. In this regard, Irish Aid has given substantial support to Trócaire in 2003-2005 under the first phase of the multi-annual programme scheme, under which predictable Irish Aid financial support is provided to key non-governmental organisation partners for an agreed programme of development activity. This assistance amounted to more than €34 million, including support for efforts to combat child labour.