Michael D Higgins (Galway West, Labour)
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Question 44: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will report on recent meetings between members of the Government and their Northern Ireland counterparts. [31906/09]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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The formal framework for members of the Government to meet members of the Northern Ireland Executive is through the North-South Ministerial Council as provided for in Strand Two of the Good Friday Agreement. They meet, however, also in other contexts. There have been forty-four ministerial meetings of the Council, including in plenary and institutional format, since restoration of the Northern Ireland institutions in May 2007. Since 1 April 2009 there has been one plenary meeting, one institutional format meeting and ten sectoral meetings of the Council. The ten sectoral meetings covered Health and Food Safety, Aquaculture and Marine, Inland Waterways, Language, Special EU Programmes, Trade and Business Development, Agriculture, Education, Tourism and Transport. Each of these sectoral meetings involved a Government Minister and his or her Ministerial counterpart in the North, as well as an accompanying Executive Minister.

I hosted the fourth meeting of the Council in Institutional format at Farmleigh on 28 April 2009. This meeting was attended by the First Minister, deputy First Minister, Junior Minister Donaldson and the Minister for Social Development, Margaret Ritchie MLA. We had a broad discussion of the economic downturn and the budgetary challenges facing both jurisdictions. We also had a good exchange on EU issues and on practical measures designed to promote greater cross-border mobility.

At the plenary meeting of the Council in Farmleigh on 6 July, the Government delegation was led by the Taoiseach and the Northern Ireland Executive delegation by the First Minister and deputy First Minister. We reviewed key developments in the NSMC since the previous such meeting in January. This included the close cooperation between relevant authorities North and South following the recent swine flu outbreaks and a cross-border agreement on the removal of waste illegally dumped in Northern Ireland. The Council also discussed progress on the A5 and A8 road upgrade projects.

The meeting also included a wide-ranging examination of the current economic challenges. The Taoiseach briefed the Council on the Government's plans to restore competitiveness to the economy and to return to a path of sustainable public finances. My colleague the Minister for Finance briefed Ministers from the Northern Ireland Executive on the proposed establishment of the National Asset Management Agency and its implications for the property sector in Northern Ireland. We also discussed some of the budgetary challenges likely to be faced by the Executive in the coming years and examined where there might be potential to expand our co-operation in areas of mutual interest.

Members of the Government have also met their Northern Ireland counterparts during meetings of the British-Irish Council. The Council meets at Summit level and, more frequently, at Ministerial and official level, to discuss matters of mutual interest. My colleague Mr. Micheál Kitt T.D., the then Minister of State for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, attended the BIC Environment Ministerial meeting in Jersey on 17 April. The Northern Ireland Executive was represented by the then Minister for the Environment, Mr. Sammy Wilson MP MLA, and Minister for Regional Development, Mr. Conor Murphy MP MLA. As North-South contact has become part of routine Ministerial business in both jurisdictions, meetings also take place outside those frameworks. Most recently the Minister for Finance met his northern counterpart on 8 September to discuss issues related to the National Assets Management Agency.

Michael D Higgins (Galway West, Labour)
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Question 45: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs his views on the ongoing response to the recent discovery of a bomb in south Armagh; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31907/09]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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I condemn the criminal actions of those responsible for the bomb discovered last week in south Armagh. The lives of local people going about their everyday business, in their homes and in the wider community, were put at serious risk by an unrepresentative few who have no support for their actions. I wish to pay tribute to the security authorities on both sides of the border who worked together to secure the area, render the device safe, and in the process averted an appalling tragedy. Their work underlines the close cooperation which exists between the authorities north and south, and the notably effective coordination between the PSNI and the Gardaí.

Those who made and planted this bomb attempted to undermine the remarkable progress on this island in recent years. It is clear that the vast majority of people irrespective of their political views are determined that they will not succeed. The relevant authorities will continue to cooperate to ensure that these criminals are brought to justice.