14. Deputy Pa Daly asked the Minister for Finance if he will consider reviewing and amending the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund for companies that operate in illegal Israeli settlements. [5223/25]

Sentiment score: -0.19

I note the Minister said that ISIF considers a variety of factors. I presume genocide, killing civilians and facilitating illegal settlements are included in that. I acknowledge that there has been some divestment from illegally occupied Palestinian areas and the Golan Heights but this is not the entire story. It is important to realise that it had been reported that ISIF still had a €1.3 million shareholding in the Israel Defense Forces-linked Palantir Technologies we heard about last December. The Israel Defense Forces, IDF, have used Palantir-supplied technology to target civilians in Gaza after a deal with the US company was announced in January 2025. There is also €1.1 million worth of shares in a controversial Israeli tech firm that partners with Israeli arms manufacturers and is run by former IDF intelligence officers who have faced demands to stop doing business in Russia. The Government has been content to allow IDF cargo planes to fly through Irish sovereign airspace. One junior Minister in the previous Government had cause to meet Israelis and instead of being reprimanded, was promoted. It seems the Government is prepared to pay lip service to the Palestinian people but is not really prepared to shout "Stop". Is the Government looking at divesting from all of these funds or does the Minister consider the matter complete?

Sentiment score: 0.12

It seems that some of the direct investments that were mentioned, which are controlled by ISIF, are not pooled investments. They are in banks such as Bank Leumi-le Israel BM, which is one of the largest banks in Israel. For decades, this bank has facilitated the expansion of illegal settlements. It granted a loan for a construction project in the Palestinian village of Azzun and bankrolled five illegal settlements. I note from the programme for Government that the Government has committed to progressing the Control of Economic Activity (Occupied Territories) Bill but what is progressing is kicking the can further down the road. This is what it seems like to many people. The Government seems to be dragging its feet and watering down its commitment. It seems to me it is not being strong enough. It is not shouting "Stop" and saying that we will not invest in anything that has any risk of further displacing or killing people, including the weakest and most vulnerable civilians. The ceasefire in Gaza is in danger because Israel has violated it several times. We need to be stronger, to shout that we will not tolerate this anymore and completely divest from anything that is displacing people.

Sentiment score: -0.16