Paul McAuliffe (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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41. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he will provide an update on any recent discussions with the political parties in Northern Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19708/23]

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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44. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the degree to which he expects to take on board the various views arising from the recent and necessary focus on Northern Ireland, the Good Friday Agreement, the Northern Protocol and the Windsor Agreement and the advice and comments from national and international politicians, in order to continue and consolidate the peace process; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19859/23]

Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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59. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he has had any recent discussions with the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland and with the political parties in Northern Ireland in relation to the need to have the Assembly, Northern Ireland Executive and the North-South Ministerial Council restored without further delay; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19777/23]

Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Aontú)
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67. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the efforts that have been made by his Department to restore Stormont. [19706/23]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 41, 44, 59, 67 and 68 together.

The full and effective operation of all of the institutions of the Good Friday Agreement across all three strands is a key priority for this Government: the power-sharing institutions in Northern Ireland; the North South Ministerial Council and the Cross Border Bodies; as well as the East-West institutions. The Agreement is designed so that these institutions support and reinforce one another.

As a co-Guarantor of the Agreement, with the British government, we have a responsibility to work with the Northern Ireland parties and our international partners to ensure the full and effective operation of the Good Friday Agreement, and all its institutions.

The people of Northern Ireland are entitled to a functioning Assembly and Executive. In recent weeks we have seen cuts to services that will effect Northern Ireland's most vulnerable. It is vital that the people of Northern Ireland are represented by the politicians that they elected in May 2022.

While I recognise that Assembly parties will require time to study the Windsor Framework, it is important to emphasise that this can be done in parallel to getting the institutions up and running.

I remain in regular contact with political representatives in Northern Ireland, reiterating the urgent need for a functioning Assembly and Executive.

The absence of a functioning Executive also has knock-on affects on the operation of Strand Two of the Agreement.I am deeply concerned that the work of the North South Ministerial Council (NSMC) has been severely disrupted in recent years. In the absence of regular NSMC meetings, the two Administrations on the island are not having the important conversations that we should be having to address shared challenges and opportunities. It is vital that the Council is allowed to continue its work as soon as possible.

I am in regular contact with the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, with restoration of the institutions a core focus of our discussions. I met the Secretary of State and the British Prime Minister most recently at the conference hosted by Queen's University Belfast last week to mark the 25th Anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement. In my remarks at the conference I also emaphasised the importance that the Government attaches to the restoration of the devolved institutions.

I had a substantive bilateral engagement with the Secretary of State on 6 April 2023 when we discussed the restoration of the devolved power sharing institutions. I also raised the Government of Ireland's continuing opposition to the British government's Legacy Bill.

The Secretary of State and I also met at the British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference (BIIGC) in Dublin earlier this year. The BIIGC is an institution of Strand Three of the Good Friday Agreement.

The Government will continue to work closely on a North-South and an East-West basis in support of the devolved power-sharing institutions in Northern Ireland and the full implementation of all of the Strands of the Good Friday Agreement and as well as subsequent agreements.

John Lahart (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)
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43. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he will provide an update on his recent engagement with the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland and the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19767/23]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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I met with the Chief Commissioners of both the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland (ECNI) and the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission (NIHRC) in Belfast on 11 April.

These are two important institutions established under the Good Friday Agreement.

We discussed a number of common concern, including the provisions of Article 2 of the Windsor Framework. That article includes an undertaking that the UK's withdrawal from of the EU should entail no diminution of the rights, safeguards or equality of opportunity provided for in the Good Friday Agreement. We also shared concerns about the the UK Legacy Bill currently progressing through Westminster, and I updated them on my recent engagements, including with victims and representative groups.

It is regrettable that, as we celebrate twenty-five years of the Good Friday Agreement, certain key human rights provisions remain unfulfilled, in particular a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland and a consultative Civic Forum. Although progress has been made on both of these issues, further developments are contingent on the formation of the Northern Ireland Executive.

This stalled progress on key human rights provisions is one of the reasons that it is essential that the parties come together to establish an Executive. I emphasised that the Government is working closely with our UK counterparts and partners in Northern Ireland, to support a return of the institutions.

It was agreed that officials will stay in contact with both Commissions as we move forward.