Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Social Democrats)
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324. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he plans to invite his Australian counterpart to Ireland in early 2023. [61886/22]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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Ireland and Australia enjoy close diplomatic relations and our Embassies are engaged in a range of activities to deepen our engagement. In 2021, we celebrated 75 years of diplomatic relations with Australia. Ireland and Australia share a common outlook and shared values on many global issues. We also work closely with Australia in multilateral fora, at the UN and beyond. Bilateral consultations are due to take place next February in Canberra at the level of senior officials, to discuss areas of future cooperation between Ireland and Australia.

Members of the Cabinet have held a number of meetings with the government of Australia this year, at both federal and state level, reflecting our close friendship. In July, the Premier of Western Australia, Mark McGowan met with both the Taoiseach and the President, and Minister Harris met with his Australian counterpart, the Minister for Skills, Brendan O'Connor. In April 2022, the Speaker of the New South Wales Parliament, Jonathan O'Dea, met the Ceann Comhairle in Dublin. A visit by Foreign Minister Wong to Ireland when schedules permit would be most welcome and would offer an opportunity to continue the close dialogue between Ireland and Australia.