Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)
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The centenary of the Rising in 2016 will be the centre-piece of the Government’s decade of commemorations programme. The format and programme for the 2016 commemoration in Dublin is still under consideration. In September 2013, in my speech to the British-Irish Association, I noted a responsibility to be attentive and respectful of all traditions on this island in our approach to the decade of commemorations. In that spirit of inclusion, I expressed the hope that the Government would host representatives of the British Royal Family and the British Government, along with leaders of Irish unionism, in Dublin to mark the centenary of the Easter Rising. The commemoration will be a unique opportunity to promote Ireland internationally. In that context, the attendance of Ireland’s international partners, including representatives from Britain, will be considered in the coming period.