Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Social Democrats)
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343. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he plans to visit Canada early in 2022. [61293/21]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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Ireland has a strong and flourishing bilateral relationship with Canada. Our two nations share deep historic ties and enjoy strong trading relations. Over the centuries, Canada has been an important destination for Irish immigrants. Today, over 4.5 million Canadians - more than 14% of the country's population – claim direct Irish ancestry.

The Government continues to commit additional resources to the Ireland-Canada relationship. In addition to our Embassy in Ottawa, a new Consulate General of Ireland was opened in Vancouver in October 2018, and we will further expand our presence in Canada with the opening of a new Consulate General in Toronto in 2022.

People-to-people connections are the foundation of our excellent relations and provide particularly valuable opportunities to further deepen the important economic and cultural links that exist between Ireland and Canada. This year alone, I have had two very fruitful virtual meetings with my former counterpart, then Canadian Foreign Minister Marc Garneau. I also warmly recall my visit to Canada for St. Patrick’s Day in 2017.

While I have no confirmed plans at the moment, I very much look forward to visiting Canada again at an appropriate opportunity.