I support the Bill. This is not an issue to which I am a stranger. I have spent quite a lot of time in the occupied territories in the West Bank and Gaza. I have witnessed the way the Israeli Defence Forces have behaved. I have thankfully never been a direct victim but I have had stones thrown at me by Israeli settlers in Hebron, so I have seen first hand what is there. I have seen sonic bombs being flown over Gaza city. I understand what is happening there. I have consistently over 25 years been appalled by the manner in which Israel has behaved towards Palestinian people and the disgraceful attitude and actions it has perpetrated over that time and long before that. There is no doubt but that this legislation is entirely morally justified and important from the point of view of the principle that is at stake. However, we should not be dishonest either or unrealistic about what it is actually going to achieve. The reality is that banning trade with the occupied territories, whether that includes goods and services, is going to have very little impact in real terms on the conflict that shocks and disgusts us all. For that reason, I did not support Deputy Boyd Barrett's Bill recently, which sought to introduce sanctions on Isreal. However much I morally supported it and thought it would be wonderful to put in place, it is not reasonable to suggest to people that can be done because legally it cannot. We, as Members of this Chamber, are bound by the restrictions of international law and, indeed, European Law and the abilities we have to restrict trade, for example. It is important for us, absolutely and unequivocally, to condemn what Israel has done and is doing and to equally condemn the precipitation of the most recent attacks since October 2023 by Hamas and the way it has essentially sacrificed its own population of ordinary innocent civilians on the altar of its political and war ambition. It is disgraceful for them but the resulting overreaction from Israel is unconscionable, illegal and genocidal. This Bill, therefore, makes sense in that regard but we also have to have regard to what it can and cannot achieve. I regret that the Bill does not include services. I think it should. I recognise that it is largely unenforceable. I recognise that fact, but there are lots of laws in this country that are not enforceable. We are not saying, for example, that nobody speeds. We are not saying that no people under 18 buy alcohol. We are not saying that people do not break the law. The fact that a law can be broken or is difficult to enforce is not a good reason not to put it in place. I understand that argument against it. I also understand that there may be consequences from other jurisdictions in terms of passing this, but we do not make laws in this Chamber on the basis of what other countries think about those laws. I also recognise the reality of the situation, however. I would not underestimate the effect that Ireland has had on this conflict. When Hamas committed that attack in October 2023, it precipitated a reaction from Israel that was entirely predictable, if appalling. For a long time after that, however, Ireland was the only voice in the western world and in the European Union speaking against that. We were certainly the first country to come out and actually voice what was happening to the Palestinian people. There is a bravery in that that I fear has never been properly recognised in this Chamber, certainly by anybody in the Opposition. It is worth recognition because although there has been relentless criticism of the Government's action since then, the reality is that the Government, the Ministers for foreign affairs, Deputies McEntee and Harris, the Taoiseach and the Tánaiste have built a coalition of European countries that are now supporting action against Israel and supporting criticism of Israel whether that is Spain, Malta, Slovenia, Belgium or the Netherlands. That is the way we will actually achieve something here. We cannot do it alone. No matter what Bills we pass here, we cannot stop the slaughter in Gaza but Europe can. The disappointing thing is that we have not yet brokered that real confidence at European level to stop this from happening, and that is what we really need to do.

Sentiment score: -0.04