Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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502. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade his views on the Government's invitation to Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, to the 1916 Commemorations; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7713/15]

Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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The centenary of the Easter Rising in 2016 will be the centre-piece of the Government’s Decade of Centenaries programme. The Taoiseach launched the outline plans for the Ireland 2016 commemorations on 21^stNovember 2014. These outline plans are currently being developed and the public are being consulted for their views.My colleague, the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Heather Humphreys T.D., who has lead responsibility for the 1916 commemoration, has tasked a team from her Department to have meetings in all parts of the country to engage with people on how Easter 1916 is most appropriately commemorated. The Government has not issued any invitations to the United Kingdom or other international partners for events in Ireland to commemorate Easter 1916. Clearly, some of the 2016 events will be moments for national commemoration, as may be the case for the Easter Sunday programme on the 27^thMarch and the actual centenary of the start of the Rising on 24^thApril. There may also be events, at home and abroad, where it would be appropriate to invite our international partners, at a suitable level, to join with us to reflect on the events of 1916 and to mark this key moment on Ireland’s path to independence and place amongst the nations of the world.

This will be considered further by the Government following the publication of the Government’s programme for Ireland 2016 in the coming weeks.