Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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50. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he will provide in tabular form those Acts currently in force for which he has lead responsibility that have parts or sections yet to be formally commenced; the details or purpose of same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32004/14]

Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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Specific provisions of Acts under my Department that have not yet been commenced are Sections 14(8) and 14(9) of the Passports Act 2008 and paragraph (iv) of section 1 of the European Communities (Amendment) Act 2012. Sections 14(8) and 14(9) of the Passports Act, if commenced, would provide that guardians’ consent to the issuing of a passport would be considered to be enduring for the child up to the age of 18. These provisions have not been commenced as changes to the passport technology system would require considerable modification, for which funding has not yet been obtained. Paragraph (iv) of Section 1 of the European Communities (Amendment) Act 2012 will add to the definition of “treaties governing the European Union”, contained in Section 1 of the European Communities Act 1972, the Protocol on the concerns of the Irish people on the Treaty of Lisbon, annexed to the Treaty on European Union and to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, done at Brussels on 16 May 2012. It will be commenced as soon as the Protocol has been ratified by all EU member states. At present, two member states have yet to finalise their ratification of the Protocol, the Czech Republic and Italy, although the necessary domestic procedures have been commenced. Our embassies in both countries are in regular contact with the relevant national authorities with a view to encouraging ratification as soon as possible and my Department is closely monitoring the matter.

This information is set out in the table below.