Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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497. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade his views on the North and the threat to the Stormont assembly; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24564/15]

Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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I am very conscious of the current political impasse in the Northern Ireland Assembly in regard to welfare reform and related budgetary matters, and the potentially serious implications for the political institutions at Stormont. This issue was discussed during the 2 June Implementation and Review meeting of the Stormont House Agreement, at which I represented the Government, together with Minister of State Seán Sherlock. The next implementation and review meeting on 25 June will be a further opportunity to take stock. The Taoiseach discussed these matters during his meeting with Prime Minister Cameron in London on 18 June. Both emphasised the importance of the Northern Ireland parties finding a way forward. The Taoiseach also discussed these issues with the deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness en marge of the plenary meeting of the North South Ministerial Council of 5 June. The Government continues to encourage and support the Northern Ireland Executive parties to reach an agreement on a way forward and for the continued implementation of the totality of the Stormont House Agreement.

The difficult budgetary outlook in the North makes it more important than ever that stable and effective power-sharing government in Belfast presses on with repairing the divisions of the past and building a prosperous and sustainable economy. I therefore urge the NI Leaders to exercise the powers invested in them by the people of Northern Ireland to find a solution within the Northern Ireland Assembly.

I hope that, with political will, a way through the current challenges can be found. A solution will require resolve and leadership from all participants. In the period ahead, the Government will remain closely engaged with the British Government, and with the Northern Ireland political parties, to encourage a resolution that enables the full implementation of the Stormont House Agreement and underwrites the stability of the devolved institutions.

Niall Collins (Limerick, Fianna Fail)
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498. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the discussions he has had with his British and Northern counterparts on the issue of collusion between British State authorities and terrorists in Northern Ireland; if he has sought an inquiry into these matters; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24870/15]

Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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That collusion occurred during the Troubles between British State forces and paramilitaries is a matter of public record. Successive Irish Governments have raised the issue of collusion with the British Government, as I outlined during a Dáil topical debate on this matter on 17 June. We continue to do so, including in relation to a number of individual cases of long-standing concern such as the Dublin and Monaghan Bombings and the case of the late Pat Finucane, both of which the Taoiseach raised at his meeting with Prime Minister Cameron on 18 June. Such cases must be adequately addressed if we are to achieve a genuinely reconciled and shared society. More than 3,500 people died during the Troubles. The suffering of their relatives and friends endures to this day. There is no hierarchy of loss or of grief for all these families. Accordingly, we continue to work on the development of a comprehensive framework for dealing with the legacy of the past as envisaged in the Stormont House Agreement. The full implementation of the provisions of the Agreement in relation to the establishment of the institutions on the past remains a priority of the Government. These institutions will include a Historical Investigations Unit (HIU) to take forward investigations into Troubles-related deaths, as well as an Independent Commission on Information Retrieval (ICIR) to enable victims and survivors seek and privately receive information about Troubles-related deaths. Good progress is being made on the establishment of these institutions which I believe will assist all victims, including the victims of collusion, in their quest for justice and the truth.