Neale Richmond (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)
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262. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade when he will continue his engagement with the new leaders of the two major Unionist parties in Northern Ireland. [27648/21]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The Taoiseach and I continue to engage with all the parties in Northern Ireland, including the DUP and UUP. 

We have of course seen some dramatic political developments over the last few days in Northern Ireland.  I wish Edwin Poots well on a personal level following his announcement that he has stepped down as party leader, and I have congratulated Sir Jeffrey Donaldson as the new leader of the DUP. I have also had a substantive meeting by video conference with Doug Beattie since his election as leader of the Ulster Unionist Party. 

The Taoiseach and I look forward to working with both leaders in their new roles. 

In any scenario we will of course continue to seek to have a good and constructive relationship with the DUP, the UUP and all the parties in the Northern Ireland Executive.

We also recognise that there are concerns in unionism around the Protocol and that this has affected and put strain on relationships.

We will always engage and listen to those concerns and we will continue to seek to address them through the Protocol itself – a solution, a hard-won compromise, that provides stability, legal certainty and flexibility and is subject to democratic consent. 

There are many shared challenges and important issues facing us all, including on Covid and on other issues including addressing legacy cases from the conflict, and the implementation of the commitments in the New Decade, New Approach agreement and previous agreements.

We look forward to continued engagement with counterparts from the Northern Ireland Executive, including through the North South Ministerial Council.  A successful meeting of the British Irish Council was also held this month, where economic recovery following the Covid-19 pandemic was central to the discussion.

I sincerely hope that we can deepen the dialogue and co-operation we have across all these issues and the shared challenges we face.

Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Aontú)
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263. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the status of the New Decade, New Approach deal. [26144/21]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The New Decade, New Approach agreement reached in January 2020 was a very significant shared achievement by the parties in Northern Ireland together with the two Governments, in restoring the power-sharing institutions of the Good Friday Agreement to operation. As outlined in the Programme for Government, its full implementation is an important priority for the Government.

The Irish Government commitments that were made at the time of the NDNA are focused on working with the Executive through the North South Ministerial Council to deliver projects that benefit people across the island. This includes greater connectivity between North and South; investing in the North West region and in border communities; supporting the Irish language in Northern Ireland; and supporting reconciliation as an integral part of the Peace Process. Although Covid 19 has been the understandable focus in the year since the NDNA was reached, nevertheless progress has been made to implement those important commitments.

It is also welcome that the Secretary of State last week gave an assurance that the positive measures agreed in support of linguistic diversity and cultural expression in Northern Ireland will be put in place through legislation in Westminster in October in the event that this balanced cultural package is not enacted through the Northern Ireland Assembly.

The important work of the North South Ministerial Council (NSMC) has resumed, to develop co-operation on an all-island basis. Two successful NSMC plenary meetings have now taken place, as well as the full range of Sectoral meetings at Ministerial level, and progress continues across the breadth of North-South areas of co-operation. It is regrettable that it was necessary to postpone the plenary meeting of the North South Ministerial Council scheduled for 18 June, and we will seek to find an early date for that to be rescheduled.

As part of the NDNA, it was also agreed that there would be regular review meetings involving the two Governments at Ministerial level and the parties to monitor progress on its implementation, and the delivery of commitments by each Government.  On Monday 11 January, I participated in the first Implementation Review Meeting alongside the First Minister, deputy First Minister, Secretary of State for Northern Ireland and party leaders in Northern Ireland. A second review meeting is planned to take place in the period ahead.

The full implementation of the Agreement is a key priority for the Government in the period ahead, and we will work with the Executive and the British Government to this end.

Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Aontú)
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264. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade his views on the Ballymurphy inquest verdict. [26145/21]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The Northern Ireland Coroner’s statement on 11 May was a very significant and detailed one, and its main findings are extremely important and clear; all ten of those killed in these events in August 1971 were found to be entirely innocent. This is a complete vindication of the determined and tireless campaign by the families on behalf of their loved ones. 

The Government has engaged with the families and supported them in their campaign to establish the facts of what happened, and they continue to have the Government's support as they consider their next steps forward. 

The significance of this campaign and these findings was fully evident in the aftermath of the inquest results, as politicians, community leaders and citizens from all communities welcomed the report and stood in solidarity with the Ballymurphy families.  I was also glad to participate, with the Taoiseach and other Deputies in acknowledging and highlighting those findings in the Dáil on 18 May. 

The deaths at Ballymurphy were part of the tragic legacy of the Troubles which saw the loss of over 3500 lives from all communities. 

Every family bereaved in the conflict must have access to an effective investigation and to a process of justice regardless of the perpetrator. All victims’ families deserve support in securing information about what happened to their loved ones. 

The Stormont House Agreement is a comprehensive and balanced framework, agreed by the two Governments and the political parties in Northern Ireland, to address the painful legacy of the past. It is vital that we make progress in its implementation - for all victims and families who have been waiting too long, and for society as a whole. The Government will continue to engage with the British Government on this most important issue in the period immediately ahead.

Patrick Costello (Dublin South Central, Green Party)
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265. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the status of the legislation to make provision for the independent commission on information retrieval which is committed to under the Stormont House Agreement, New Decade New Approach and the Programme for Government; and the timeline for its implementation. [30980/21]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The Government is committed to the full implementation of the Stormont House Agreement, which was collectively agreed by the two Governments and the political parties in Northern Ireland after extensive talks. 

The framework of the Stormont House Agreement provided for a set of institutions to deal comprehensively and fairly with the legacy of the Troubles, and this framework included an Independent Commission on Information Retrieval (ICIR) for truth recovery, to be available to victims and survivors across the UK and Ireland.

The objective of the ICIR will be to enable victims and survivors to seek and privately receive information about the Troubles-related deaths of their next of kin.

The Irish and British Governments concluded an agreement on the establishment of the ICIR in October 2015. As set out in that agreement, the Commission will consist of five members; an Independent Chairperson of international standing, appointed by the two Governments, one Commissioner each appointed by the Irish and British Governments, and two Commissioners appointed jointly by Northern Ireland's First Minister and deputy First Minister.

The ICIR agreement was signed by the Minister for Foreign Affairs in October 2015 and laid before the Oireachtas in January 2016. The Independent Commission can only be formally established once the necessary legislation has been enacted in both jurisdictions and the two Governments have notified each other of completion of all other domestic legal procedures required to bring the agreement into force.

I have engaged extensively with the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland on these issues to urge him to move forward with the implementation of the Stormont House Agreement legacy bodies, including the ICIR, and we remain in ongoing contact to support a way forward on these matters.