Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, Socialist Party)
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202. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade his views on the United Nations new sustainable development goals; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33866/15]

Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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The 17 Sustainable development Goals (SDGs) are at the heart of the new development framework adopted by global leaders at last weekend’s UN Summit in New York. The Summit saw the largest number of heads of state and government in the history of the UN gather to adopt the new framework, the 2030 Agenda, which will guide the actions of all countries in their efforts to eradicate poverty and hunger and achieve sustainable development over the next fifteen years.

The Taoiseach led the Irish delegation on the opening day of the Summit and President Higgins and my colleague Minister of State Sherlock also participated.

Ireland led by Ambassador David Donoghue and Kenya co-facilitated the final phase of negotiations to agree this new development framework and succeeded in brokering consensus among all 193 Member States of the UN on this wide ranging global agenda. Last week was a proud moment for Ireland and our achievement in helping deliver this historic agreement was widely acknowledged.

The 2030 Agenda is the second of three major agreements that will be concluded this year and which, taken together, have the potential to deliver a truly transformative agenda that can end poverty and promote sustainable development. The first of these is the Addis Ababa Accord on the means of implementing the new SDGs which was agreed in July, and the third, the climate agreement, should be concluded in Paris in December.

The new SDGs are challenging and ambitious but we have been heartened by the level of commitment to their implementation expressed by global political leaders at last weekend’s Summit. The Taoiseach emphasised the importance Ireland attaches to these new goals and to their implementation.

I am determined that Ireland’s aid programme which is central to our foreign policy will continue to focus on ending poverty in the poorest countries in the world. The SDGs are universally applicable and all countries will have to take action. Like our EU partners, we will now focus on developing the most appropriate institutional framework to deliver the 2030 Agenda at home and abroad.