Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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31. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the discussions he or his Department have had with the British and Northern Ireland authorities to date in 2021 in relation to issues such as extended delays in bringing cases to trial involving Irish citizens, prison conditions for Republicans and other such security-related issues; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47062/21]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The issues to which the Deputy refers are kept under review by my officials at the Belfast Secretariat. Officials regularly engage with a range of parties to monitor the situation in relation to security related matters.

The Deputy will be aware that the COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact in terms of causing delays and backlogs within the Northern Ireland criminal justice system. These delays come on top of the significant delays that were reported back in 2018 in the ‘Speeding Up Justice’ Report. As justice powers are a devolved matter, the NI Department of Justice are taking forward measures to address the delays within the system.  

In recent months, officials have discussed the separated regime at Maghaberry with a number of key stakeholders. The Deputy is welcome to contact my Department if he has further concerns to raise.