Colm Burke (Cork North-Central, Fine Gael)
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79. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade to provide an update on her Department's progress in supporting the re-establishment and full operation of a Northern Ireland Civic Forum, as envisaged in the Good Friday Agreement, and as set out in the Programme for Government; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [66682/25]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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The Programme for Government includes a commitment to advocate for the re-establishment and full operation of a Northern Ireland Civic Forum as envisaged in the Good Friday Agreement.

That commitment reflects the importance of the Forum as a means of incorporating civic voices in the governance of Northern Ireland.

On 4 July, First Minister O'Neill and deputy First Minister Little-Pengelly forwarded a written statement to members of the Northern Ireland Assembly, outlining their intention to reconstitute the Civic Forum.

In that statement, the First Minister and deputy First Minister confirmed their intention to reconstitute the Forum on a compact, flexible and agile basis that complements the Executive's processes of stakeholder engagement in policy formulation.

I understand that the First Minister and deputy First Minister will bring the proposed arrangements for seeking the views of the Forum to the Assembly for approval later this year.

We will examine those proposed arrangements on publication to determine whether they are in keeping with the ambitions of the Good Friday Agreement.

I will also engage with the First Minister and deputy First Minister on this issue to emphasise the importance the Government, as co-guarantor, attached to the inclusion of civic voices in the government of Northern Ireland, which is a key part of our commitment to the full implementation of the Agreement.