1. Deputy Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs for an update on the progress of the Control of Economic Activity (Occupied Territories) Bill 2018. [4844/25]
Sentiment score: 0.14
As this is our first question time in our new roles, I wish the Tánaiste well in his new role. While I will hold him to account, I also look forward to co-operation where appropriate. We had a lengthy debate on the occupied territories Bill last week. There was a fair bit of discussion about the vehicle but, to my mind, a change of substance is afoot in what the Government is proposing. I will put the question simply because I do not think it was really answered. Is it the intention of the Government to ensure an effective ban on services from occupied territories?
Sentiment score: 0.17
I share the Tánaiste's concern about the ceasefire. I might say some more on that, as I have another question later about Palestine and the Middle East. I urge people on all sides of the conflict to step back from the brink. With the limited time I have, I will return to the legislation. It seems that there is an attempt to obscure issues of substance with technical issues. There may be technical issues that can be worked through. That argument was not advanced by the Department of Foreign Affairs in discussion with Senator Black in advance of the election. It was felt that it was possible to make those changes within the body of the existing Bill. The Minister's position in political debate and discussion in advance of the election was to pass the occupied territories Bill. In order to clarify, I ask the Minister to set aside the vehicle for a moment and answer the clear question. In terms of the programme for Government commitment, is it the Government's intention to have a legislative ban on trading of services with occupied territories?
Sentiment score: -0.06
I understand Senator Black has been in contact with the Minister and has not been able to get an appointment as of yet. I hope that will happen very shortly. I will keep asking the question. This has not been addressed; I have not been given an answer. I raised it numerous times in the course of the last debate. I have raised it twice here already. Technical issues can be overcome. They are overcome frequently. God knows how many amendments came into the planning Act on Committee Stage during the last few months of the previous Dáil. That kind of stuff happens regularly. Is it possible to engage with the Bill and adjust? Technical issues were advanced with the drafter of the Bill but they were not huge. There were technical issues and technical reviews from the Department of Foreign Affairs but they were entirely reachable. The point is that technical issues are being used as a ruse or distraction from the fact that the policy of the Government has changed since the election. The Government's policy is now to ban only goods. If it was Ireland, 30% of our trade is in goods. I will put the question again simply. Does the Government intend to have a ban on the trading of services with the occupied territories? That is a very clear question; the Minister has an opportunity to answer it.
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That does not clarify my question.
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Is the Minister saying precisely goods alone?
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That is not a clear answer.
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No, it is not.
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Confirming an affirmative is not the same as denying a negative.
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That is a change in the policy.
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Uncontested.
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3. Deputy Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs how the Government intends to ensure adequate capacity within the passport service this summer. [4847/25]
Sentiment score: 0.18
I commend the staff in the Passport Office. They are often extremely busy and do an important job. Sometimes they have to produce passports under difficult circumstances and at very short notice. We have all here probably added to their burden at times, dealing with urgent cases. It is early in the year yet but I am sure the office will get busy. Will the Tánaiste ensure there is sufficient staff in the Passport Office to deal with demand during the busy summer period?
Sentiment score: 0.12
I echo that. The sooner people check, the less likely there are to be difficulties. In most instances, the passport service works quite well. It can be very efficient at times, with a significant improvement in recent years, especially for renewals. People are often impressed at the speed at which the passport arrives. This is a huge credit to the staff and the development that has gone in there in recent times. The issue is that, when problems arise, they can be devastating. Sometimes they can arise in the context of holidays. More severely, it can result in people missing weddings or, most particularly of all, there are issues in circumstances of severe illness, funerals or other things that, unfortunately, happen in the course of life. We need to ensure we have a system that is as close to perfect as possible. There may be a bit of an issue at times in terms of the feedback loop when communicating with Garda stations, but I will return to this point. I would like an update on how the Passport Office responds in these circumstances.
Sentiment score: 0.14
I thank the Tánaiste. Most of the instances we deal with - I am sure it is the same throughout the House - relate to people who submit an application but receive notification from the Passport Office that something is not right or, very often, that the person who provided a signature on a consent form is not contactable. Typically, that is a garda. This can be an issue. We have Garda stations that are open 24-7 but we also have many Garda stations that are only open for certain office hours and the landline is answered for only a couple of hours a week. This can cause an issue when somebody gets a form signed at one of these locations, with something that was not urgent at the start then becoming urgent. It is a bit like snakes and ladders, with people ending up right back at square one. The Department of Justice has a job to do with Garda opening hours in that regard, and there is also a legislative case for allowing civilian Garda staff to be part of this process, freeing up gardaí. In the meantime, though, there should be some mechanism for the Passport Office to ensure people are not starting right at the start again in order to fix the issue that arises because a witness, that is, the garda, is not contactable.
Sentiment score: 0.27
5. Deputy Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs his response to the latest Israeli offensive against the occupied West Bank. [4846/25]
Sentiment score: -0.15
We touched on this briefly. It is a grave situation. The Israeli Prime Minister is threatening to end the ceasefire and reopen a conflict that has claimed the lives of tens of thousands of people. Hamas is threatening not to release hostages. Both threats are to be condemned. It is a very worrying situation. My question relates to the West Bank. I invite the Minister’s commentary in relation to that because off the back of the ceasefire there was almost a sense that the world was looking the other way. Much has been happening in the West Bank that is unacceptable as well as breaches of the ceasefire in Gaza.
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The sanctions that have been there are necessary but it is vitally important the EU as a whole politically raises its concerns. I urge the Minister in his role to encourage the EU to make strong statements against what has been happening in the West Bank since 30 January. UNRWA no longer has any contact with the Israeli authorities because of their ban. It has made it impossible for UNRWA - a UN agency, lest we forget - to raise concerns about civilian suffering in the Palestinian territory which is putting the lives of Palestinian refugees and UNRWA staff at risk. I welcome the increase in funding by the Irish Government. I said last week I do not have a problem recognising where the Government does the right thing. I said that last week. That does not mean that I will not say if I am dissatisfied with certain areas, but I have said it recently. What is happening there at the minute where some 40,000 people have been evacuated in recent times and the scale of movement from the West Bank in the context of the violence is very considerable and is not properly getting the attention internationally that it ought to.
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I agree with that. I welcome that meeting in relation to the association agreement which is something we have been raising here for the past two years or more. I will return to the debate we had earlier to make the point that for a long time the issue has been the challenge in trying to hold Israel to the norms of international law. It has acted with impunity and because of that has breached international law further. The settlements are contrary to international law. The International Court of Justice, ICJ, made a very clear declaration on that. The ICJ did not make any distinction between goods and services. The Minister gave me something of an answer earlier, so I will now ask why. Why is it the case that the Irish Government no longer wishes to pursue a ban on services from the occupied territories, including the West Bank?
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It is a change of substance.
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