2026-01-22

D'admhaigh cathaoirleach Bhord Bia go mbíonn a chomhlacht ag iompórtáil feola ón Bhrasaíl do mhargadh na hÉireann. Tá dualgas curtha ar fheirmeoirí cloí le caighdeáin timpeallachta, leasa agus rialacha atá ag dul in airde i gcónaí. Ag an am céanna, áfach, tá an cathaoirleach ar Bhord Bia, foras Stáit atá freagrach as bia, feoil agus feirmeoireacht na hÉireann a chur chun cinn, anois ceangailte le hiompórtáil feola ó earnáil nach mbíonn ag feidhmiú de réir na gcaighdeán céanna. Caithfidh an Rialtas an cathaoirleach a thógáil as a phost. The chair of Bord Bia, the State agency charged with promoting Irish food, Irish beef and Irish farming is also the chief executive of Dawn Farm Foods, a company that has confirmed that it sources Brazilian beef for the Irish market. That fact alone should have set alarm bells ringing across government. Instead, we have seen evasion, minimisation and the circling of the wagons. Bord Bia's credibility rests on public trust. It exists to champion Irish producers, Irish farmers and the reputation of Irish food at the highest international standards. How can that credibility possibly survive when its chair is simultaneously presiding over a company importing beef from Brazil, a sector repeatedly associated across Europe with food safety scares, traceability failures, animal welfare concerns and weak regulatory oversight? Brazilian beef has already had to be recalled from Irish supermarket shelves. It has been the subject of sustained and serious concern for years around growth hormones that are banned here, enforcement failures and standards that Irish farmers are rightly never allowed to fall below. Yet, at the very moment Irish farmers are being asked to meet even higher environmental and welfare and regulatory standards, the chair of Bord Bia is linked to imports from a sector that does not operate to those standards. This is not just poor optics. This is a fundamental conflict of interest, and it goes to the heart of public trust. The Government did not inherit this situation; the Government created this situation. Mr. Murrin was appointed by Government to a position of public trust. This is not an internal board matter that can be parked, delayed or quietly discussed behind closed doors. It is a matter of ministerial responsibility and governance, and it comes at a time of deeply damaging wider context. Yesterday, in the European Parliament, Sinn Féin was key to securing a significant victory in referring the EU Mercosur deal to the European Court of Justice. Meanwhile, the Government’s own MEPs were working against that outcome. Against this backdrop, confidence in Bord Bia is essential. Yet, instead of recognising the seriousness of this issue, the Taoiseach chose yesterday to try to wave it away, accusing those who raised legitimate concerns in this House of dragging down a good organisation. Sinn Féín is not undermining Bord Bia; the Government is by defending the indefensible, by refusing to acknowledge an obvious conflict of interest and by sending a message that accountability stops at the door of powerful corporate figures. This is not about personalities. This is about protecting Irish farmers, consumer confidence and the integrity of Irish food promotion at home and abroad. My question to the Tánaiste is simple and direct. Does he accept there is a fundamental conflict of interest in the chair of Bord Bia also being chief executive of a company importing Brazilian beef? If he does accept that, will the Government finally act and remove the chair from his position, or is it going to continue to defend a situation that is plainly untenable and expect farmers and the public to simply look the other way?

Hear, hear.

Let me begin by agreeing with the Deputy on one point, which is that Bord Bia is indeed an exemplary organisation. It is an organisation that is fulfilling its mandate with distinction and it is doing so at a time of huge geopolitical and geoeconomic uncertainty. Last year, we saw Irish agrifood exports exceed more than €21 billion. Bord Bia is, therefore, excelling. Bord Bia is doing an exceptional job. Considering that the vast amount of food we produce in this country is exported, its role is indeed vital. We saw only last week China open its markets to Irish beef, which is an example of the work done by Bord Bia, Government and Government agencies in terms of opportunities for Irish food. Issues in relation to governance or conflicts of interest, perceived or real, are, indeed, important. I do not dispute that but so too is process. Process is extremely important. Far be it from the Deputy's framing of the situation, this morning, in fact, perhaps while we are in this Chamber, the board of Bord Bia is meeting and considering all of these matters. That is the appropriate, responsible, fair way of considering and examining any issue when it arises, not shouting and roaring at each other on the floor of this House.

Nobody is shouting and roaring.

That is the way business should be done. In fact, that is not just my view; it is actually the view of the president of the Irish Farmers Association. The Deputy wraps himself in the mantle of speaking for farmers. Their elected representative said in his statement yesterday that the correct forum to address this issue is with the chair and other directors at a board meeting. He also had the decency to say that he was then happy to await the outcome of that meeting to see what the answers were and hear from the chair before delivering his view. That is a responsible thing to do. That is also what the Minister for agriculture will do because the Minister has asked that he would receive a detailed report on all of these matters from Bord Bia directly following today's board meeting. Far be it from any of the accusations or obfuscation or any of the words the Deputy threw at me or at the Government here, we are going to follow due process. This place is not a kangaroo court where we just come in and say, "Off with your head". We actually have boards. We have legislation. I have confidence in the board of Bord Bia to do its duty in examining any issues, perceived or real, that would arise and then give its view to the Minister in line with how this place operates and how Government operates. I have confidence in that process. I have confidence in the speed at which Bord Bia has convened its board meeting and, indeed, that the chair has sought an opportunity to engage with the board. The comments of the president of the IFA, Mr. Francie Gorman, in relation to that being the correct forum to address the issue is absolutely the right course of action.

The legislation is very clear. The Minister has the power to remove the chair. Indeed, the board on its own does not have that power. It needs the consent of the Minister. There are a number of facts that are undisputable. The chair of Bord Bia, the State agency responsible for promoting Irish food at the highest international standards, is also the director of a company that is importing Brazilian beef. Another fact is that Brazilian beef had to be recalled just in the past months from Irish shelves. Another fact is that Brazilian beef that was in Ireland in the past number of months had hormones that are banned in the European Union. The other fact is the chair of that company, who acknowledges that his company imports Brazilian beef for the Irish market, is the chair appointed by the Government as head of Bord Bia. The issue here is there has to be credibility, good faith and accountability. With all the facts we know now, which are undisputed even by the chair himself, does the Tánaiste have confidence in him to continue as chair of Bord Bia when he acknowledges his company is importing beef from a region that does not live up to the same standards as Irish farmers the length and breadth of this State are required to and, if they do not comply with those standards, are heavily penalised for doing so?

You are at it again, Deputy, and you have done it in this House so many times. You just come in, say somebody's name and call for them to be sacked. Do you remember your leader did that with a former Garda Commissioner and how badly that backfired on your party?

Hear, hear.

Due process matters. Just because the Deputy has read a headline or heard this or that: what is the purpose of a board of directors if the Deputy does not actually want it to have met this morning. It is meeting right now. Can he wait a few minutes? Can he wait for board members to sit down, have a conversation and then report to the Minister, or does it have to be now, in time for the 1 o'clock news? Come on now, let us have a little bit of fairness here. This shoot first and ask questions later, that the Deputy's party is steeped in, does not serve democracy well. I have every confidence in the process. I have every confidence in Bord Bia to discharge its duty and in the board of Bord Bia to discharge its corporate governance duties. I have every confidence in our excellent Minister for agriculture to respond to any detailed report he receives from the board.

Do you have confidence in the chair?

We have confidence in a process. Process matters. I know process, democracy and all of that are really inconvenient. Kangaroo courts are much easier but actually allowing somebody an opportunity to talk and answer questions and a board to give a considered view is how this Government functions, and that is a stark difference between this Government and our responsible politics and your populism.

Do you have confidence in the chair?

Let the process commence.

Do as I say, not as I do.

Ask Máiría Cahill.

Protect your own. Do as I say, not as I do.

Deputy Doherty, please. I call Deputy Kelly.

Yesterday, at the media committee, we had testimony from Gráinne Seoige in relation to her experiences during the general election and subsequently. It was harrowing and I thank her for coming forward. We have all heard of many other cases of what has happened to many people, mostly women, in regard to AI tools and social media companies. In fact, I would call them publishers. They are not platforms; they are actually e-commerce companies. They make money and this is how they make money. We need to think about how we are going to deal with this. People have come to me and to many others in this Chamber as well. We need robust legislation. The simple fact of the matter is that technology is moving so fast, it is very difficult for any Legislature, including us, to keep up. We in the Labour Party believe there is a lacuna in the law, particularly regarding how AI- or computer-generated sexualised images of adults are being created and then distributed. We have decided as a party we need to bring in legislation to deal with this. Today, I am publishing the Harassment, Harmful Communications and Related Offences (Amendment) Bill 2026. It is basically an update to Coco's Law, which our party brought forward and which a Minister sitting opposite finally got through the Oireachtas. It provides amendments to Coco's Law to change the definition of intimate images to include AI- or computer-generated images. It also creates a new offence of creating such an image of a person without the consent of that person. Third, and crucially, borrowing from law on child sexual abuse, it makes it an offence to knowingly facilitate the generation of such images for the purposes of publication or sharing. This is critical legislation. It will deal with the e-commerce companies as publishers. Yesterday, the testimony was that when Gráinne Seoige went to the Garda, at the end of all the chasing, gardaí came up against an individual who would not give over their phone. Ms Seoige would have had to look for a court order. How long was that going to take and was it practical? Ultimately, this needs to be dealt with at publisher-e-commerce company level. This legislation deals with the individual but it also deals with the company. I do not care whether the Government takes this Bill and changes it, improves it or whatever. I am calling on it to engage with the legislation. We do not have time for this to go on and on. I ask that in the coming weeks, working collectively with us and whomever else wants to be involved, we bring into law a change to deal with this lacuna and ensure the publishers - the e-commerce companies - will be dealt with by the law for facilitating such behaviour.

I thank Deputy Kelly for his leadership on this issue. I acknowledge his Bill and thank him for the role the committee he chairs is playing in this regard. I, too, commend Gráinne Seoige on going before the committee. In recent times, what we have seen in relation to Grok and the use of AI to undress and produce nudified images is dehumanising, degrading and disgusting. There absolutely is an onus on all of us in the House - as the Deputy rightly says, it is not a party political issue - to come together to respond. I commit today that the Government absolutely will engage constructively with him on his Bill. My colleagues Deputies Boland, Butterly and Keogh are also producing a Bill on this issue. I am sure all parties in the House are considering how best to grapple with it. I want to say a couple of things on the record of the House to be helpful in terms of working out where gaps may exist and where there is legal clarity. I acknowledge the huge work done on Coco's Law by the Minister, Deputy McEntee, during her time in the Department of justice. The sharing of non-consensual intimate images and the production and-or sharing of images, whether AI-generated or not, is illegal in Ireland under Coco's Law. The latest figures show around 99 cases in respect of sections 2, 3 or 4 of the Act have been taken between its commencement in 2021 and the end of 2023. We have seen 23 cases prosecuted on indictment in the Circuit Court. However, the Deputy is right about the technology moving so fast. It was always envisaged, at both domestic and EU level, that we would have to continue to review laws and ensure they keep pace with technology. That is why the Taoiseach and I convened a meeting this week with several Ministers and also with Coimisiún na Meán and with the Attorney General. The Minister for communications, Deputy O'Donovan, working with the Minister of State, Deputy Smyth, is committed to bringing proposals forward to the Cabinet within the next few weeks. I have another suggestion, which I make to be constructive. Under the EU's AI Act, there is a list of prohibited practices. Our own advisory council has suggested that we as a country should seek the amendment of Article 5 of the Act by expanding it to include the prohibition of AI practices that allow users to generate non-consensual intimate images. My understanding is that under Article 112(1) of the Act, the European Commission must carry out an annual assessment of whether the Article 5 prohibited practices list should be amended and to report its finding to both the European Parliament and the Council - in other words, to try to create a mechanism to keep the prohibited list up to date. Yes, let us work domestically. Yes, let us work to see what legislative changes may be required here in Ireland, and we will work constructively on that. Let us also ask our representatives at European level and, indeed, the Irish Presidency later this year to work to see whether we can amend the AI Act, alongside the work we should and will do in this country to improve our own legislation.

I thank the Tánaiste. I am worried when I hear him talk about the Irish European Presidency. That is five months away but we do not have five weeks. He mentioned the volume of cases. How many will end up going to the very end to a prosecution? We have a situation whereby if we do not bring in legislation, this continuous sexualisation without their consent of women and men and the sharing of those images will continue and will not be prosecuted, unless we act now. That is a fact. That is why we are bringing this forward. It does not have to be our Bill but ultimately if we do not deal with this in a timely manner people are going to end up suffering. We were given evidence yesterday that since she went forward the amount of times this image has been shared has multiplied. We in the Labour Party are bringing forward this Bill to deal with this once and for all. We cannot have a situation where An Garda Síochána is going around the country trying to chase mobile phones it cannot get its hands on. It is not resource-practical. We need to cut it out at the e-commerce publisher level and this Bill does that. I ask the Government to please work with us to ensure it can be brought in in the coming weeks. I do not care if the Government brings it in or I do but somebody must bring it in.

Just in case there is any confusion I am agreeing with the Deputy in principle entirely that the responsibility here has to be on the company. The way that has been transposed into national legislation has been under the infrastructure of the AI Act. This Government will work constructively with the Deputy, with his party and with his committee on any improvements or changes we can make to Irish legislation. I too do not care where the idea comes from or who has the good idea or the best idea because we all want to do the same thing. What we have seen here is dehumanising, degrading and disgusting. It has had a real, profound impact on many people in the country and across the world. People have been directly impact and there is also the chilling and general disgusting feel people have sensed from the abuse of technology and from AI. We need to act and we will act. The committee hearing yesterday was a useful and important starting point. The recommendations of our AI advisory group are also good. These are the experts in this area. That is why we convened our meeting this week. It is why the Minister is due to report to Government. I will ask the Minister to proactively engage with Deputy Kelly and all the Opposition parties because we need to pull together on this and show Ireland can absolutely lead in innovation but we can also lead in protecting our values, protecting children, protecting women and making sure technology is never abused.

Donald Trump's Board of Peace was billed as a body that would oversee governance and reconstruction in Gaza. However, its proposed charter does not even mention Gaza. Instead it gives a broad mandate to resolve global conflicts. Given the list of people who have signalled they will join it is clear the outfit should be renamed the board of autocrats and war criminals. Included in their number are Netanyahu, Putin and Lukashenko. To highlight the absurdity of this travesty, Netanyahu is unable to attend a signing ceremony for the Board of Peace today because as an indicted war criminal he fears being arrested if he turns up in Davos. As more and more concerning details emerge about Trump's Board of Peace one thing is clear, which is that this has little to do with peace in Gaza and everything to do with destroying the UN and making the world less secure and safe. For that reason a number of European countries have already said they will not be signing up. Among their number are Sweden, Norway, France, Slovenia and now the UK but incredibly the Tánaiste's Government is still apparently mulling over whether or not it should sign up. This begs the question of whether there is any outrage perpetrated by Trump that the Government is willing to take a strong and principled stand on. The Tánaiste's Government's failure to rule out joining Trump's gang of war criminals is just the latest example of failing to live up to its words. On Sunday the Taoiseach strongly hinted the occupied territories Bill was dead in the water. He defended the inexcusable delay in enacting this supposedly priority legislation. He effectively ruled out services being included in the Bill if it moves forward and he stressed the Government was pivoting more to the peace process approach in Gaza citing, incredibly, the creation of Trump's Board of Peace. The Taoiseach also highlighted our continued support for the UN and UNRWA, which I strongly agree with. However, this week the Israeli Government razed an UNRWA facility to the ground in the occupied territories. This was an utterly outrageous act. Israel is still murdering Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank with complete impunity. Donald Trump is trying to herald in a new era of chaos, division and adversity. We need to stand firm against Trump as he seeks to legitimise war criminals. Will the Tánaiste categorically rule out any involvement in Trump's so-called Board of Peace? Does this Government have any intention of enacting the occupied territories Bill?

I thank Deputy O'Callaghan very much for raising the matter. Just to remind all of us, including myself, the original idea in relation to a Board of Peace – I will get to what I think are the very serious issues with it – arose from the comprehensive plan to end the Gaza conflict which on 17 November received support from the United Nations. On 17 November the United Nations voted to adopt a resolution endorsing the comprehensive plan and it was envisaged that as the next stage of that plan there would be the formation of some form of board to assist in advancing it. Of course Ireland and many other countries around Europe and the world were eager to play a constructive role. A country like Ireland can of course bring to that table significant experience in conflict resolution, decommissioning, respect for international law and our long-standing commitment to a two-state solution. That is the context. Let me also be very clear what we are seeing today at this signing ceremony could not be further removed from that original conversation and the Deputy’s comments are right about the lack of reference to Gaza and the very serious red flags. Anything Putin is considering joining with the word “peace” in it does not sit well. The cost of $1 billion to join does not sit well and also anything that in any way seeks to undermine, replace or usurp the United Nations is not something the Government would support and I do not think it is something Dáil Éireann or the people of Ireland would support either. There are very significant governance issues with it as well, including that, as envisaged, the charter suggests the President of the United States – as in the current incumbent – would be the chair and that person would also have the ability to designate his successor and appoint, remove and renew members of the executive, so you could pay the $1 billion and be kicked off the thing. There is a whole range of very serious issues here. What the Taoiseach is doing on behalf of the Government by not turning up at the signing ceremony today is entirely responsible. I was at a meeting of EPP leaders yesterday and no European leader has turned up at the signing ceremony bar President Trump’s ally, if you like, Prime Minister Orbán of Hungary. It is our expectation that at the European Council dinner this evening of European heads of state and heads of government that this issue will further be considered. I am not suggesting Deputy O’Callaghan is but I would not like to see our position in any way misrepresented. We have not joined the board, we did not turn up at the signing ceremony but we are obviously going to discuss it with our EU colleagues because Europe needs to stand united in supporting the primacy of the United Nations and making sure we get the focus back here to what was meant to be phase 2 of the peace plan for Gaza. My colleague, the Minister, Deputy McEntee, who is here with us, was in the Middle East last week, I believe. She was at the Rafah crossing seeing for herself the impact of Irish humanitarian aid - of funding from the people of this country - but also seeing what more can and must be done. The Taoiseach was right to make the point Ireland is very eager to see how we can play a practical role in trying to help alleviate the most horrific humanitarian situation.

Gabhaim buíochas leis an Tánaiste. The stated position, therefore, of the Government on Trump's so-called Board of Peace is that it is considering its response. That has been the stated position up to now. Will the Tánaiste rule out, unequivocally and categorically, that Ireland will not be involved in any shape or form with this travesty Trump is putting forward? Will he do that and do that now? That is what I am asking him to do. Let us not have any ambiguity about it. The Tánaiste should say on behalf of the Irish Government we will have no involvement whatsoever in this travesty and rule it out categorically. On the occupied territories Bill, the Tánaiste promised this Dáil a number of months ago the Bill would be brought to the House by the end of November last year but it still has not happened. When is it going to happen and is it going to include goods and services?

Unlike some governments around the world I do not stand up and single-handedly make decisions and announce them without engagement with colleagues. My personal view and the view of Government colleagues is that we cannot see any scenario in which Ireland can participate in the so-called Board of Peace as currently constructed. Of course, it would be a very different situation were we back to where the UN was on 17 November in terms of countries genuinely coming together in a board to genuinely try to help move phase 2 of a resolution to the horrific conflict and indeed genocide we have seen in Gaza. Process does matter. I do not want to be argumentative on this but we heard calls in this House that the Government should introduce retaliatory tariffs and hit the Trump administration. Thank God we did not take that advice. We worked through the process with our European colleagues and we managed to get to a situation where additional tariffs were not imposed and managed to calm down the economic situation, so process matters. Allowing the Government the opportunity to sit down with our European colleagues to discuss and tease through a European response to global issues is sometimes a prudent thing to do.

What about the occupied territories Bill?

On the occupied territories Bill, the position is as outlined by the Taoiseach. The Minister received the Attorney General's advice just before Christmas. She has gone back with further questions and we will engage with the Oireachtas on it in due course.

An estimated 4,500 people have been reported killed during the latest round of protests in Iran. This figure could be more than 12,000 when all the figures have been checked. This follows 2022 protests when 551 people, including 68 children, were confirmed killed. In 2019, up to 1,500 people were killed. In 2017-18, 41 protesters were killed. In 2009, 70 protesters were killed. These are only the numbers of those killed in documented protests and crackdowns by this murderous and undemocratic regime. It does not include executions after unfair trials or political prisoners' deaths in custody. Iran has significantly increased its executions in recent years and now reportedly carries out more than half of all executions in the world outside China. Last year saw a record number of executions and it looks like this number could be dwarfed this year, even with some of the recent postponements. This regime is brutal and, for example, recently took part in a raid of the Imam Khomeini Hospital, carried out by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, IRGC, which answers directly to the Ayatollah. A nurse on site shared information that the IRGC beat patients who were wounded, staff and families with batons. The glass entrances were smashed and they stormed the wards with tear gas. Children in the paediatric wards also suffered intense beatings. This attack on the hospital is one example of a crime against humanity. I note that Ireland raises the issue of the death penalty privately and bilaterally in contacts with Iranian leaders and officials in Ireland and Iran, including in the last round of political consultations with representatives of the Iranian foreign ministry held in 2024. We also do so publicly and multilaterally and in the UN General Assembly Human Rights Council, but now it has gone to another level. In this context, it is good to see the European Parliament has a forthcoming plenary vote on a resolution concerning the repression of protesters in Iran. Will the Tánaiste and the Taoiseach be asking Irish MEPs to support this resolution? I also note that recently the accreditation ceremony for the new Iranian ambassador was postponed. Will it be postponed indefinitely, given the situation? On a related note, I would also like to know what contacts, if any, the Irish Government has with opposition groups based in and outside Iran, including those who claim to be in a position to form a provisional government pending free and fair elections. Has the Irish Government called for the designation of the IRGC as a terrorist organisation, unilaterally or in an EU context? The Iranian people I have met are a warm, friendly and inclusive bunch. They, unfortunately, followed one murderous dictatorship with another theocratic brutal regime. None of the elections held in recent years were free or fair in any way. In this context, it is important for the international community to take a stand.

I agree with the Deputy. I am also grateful to him for raising the issue of Iran. It is not raised nearly often enough in this House. The brutal, disgusting repression we have seen of the brave Iranian protesters should be called out, as should the heroism of those protesters, who are standing up for their future and the aspiration they rightly have to live in a free, safe and democratic country and to have a better future for them, their children and grandchildren. It is an aspiration shared by every political party in this House and by the people of Ireland. We stand in solidarity with the brave protesters of Iran and will work at all levels, nationally and internationally, through all multilateral institutions and through our membership of the European Union to continue to shine a spotlight on the horrific brutality of the Iranian regime and the importance of standing in solidarity and support, and looking for demonstrable ways to show our support for those exercising their right to protest. In this country, we stand for freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and access to information and these rights must be fully respected. The brutal regime in Iran can cut the Internet, but the genie is out of the bottle. The people of the world have seen the brutality of the Iranian regime. It is there for all to see. While it has tried to silence the protesters, it has failed and will fail. We call on the Iranian authorities to refrain from violence, to immediately restore communications and to uphold the fundamental rights of all Iranians, but we say so knowing this is not a regime that has shown any interest in doing that. That is why the Iranian ambassador designate was invited to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade on 12 January, for our concerns to be strongly conveyed to the regime in Tehran. We remain concerned about Iran's malign role in the region, specifically its support of armed non-state actors, or terrorists, such as Hezbollah, the militias in Iraq and the Houthis. Ireland is also concerned about Iran's ongoing weapons and weapons-technology transfers to Russia in support of its war of aggression in Ukraine. Sometimes things can seem far away and distant, but there is a direct correlation between Iran providing technology to Russia, which is carrying out a war on the continent of Europe, and all the disruption it is causing and the fundamental violation of rights. In common with the international community, Ireland wants to see a negotiated settlement that addresses worries about Iran's nuclear programme. There are already significant sanctions in place on Iran in relation to nuclear activities, the supply of weapons to Russia and specific human rights violations. The EU continues to review its sanctions policies. I would encourage an active review of the sanctions policy to see what more we can do at a European level. In principle, Ireland will support any additional sanctions for any violation of human rights and continue to review those proposals. On some of the specific questions, I will ask the Minister and the Department of foreign affairs to come back to the Deputy with any detail. However, I share the Deputy's view. The Iranian community in Ireland wants to see a better future for their country and I want them to know the people of this country stand with them.

As the Tánaiste correctly said, this despotic regime funds terrorism and murder across the globe, including against our neighbours in Ukraine who have been subject to attacks by drones produced in Iran. I am conscious of the geopolitical context for any US Administration or Israeli attack. We have had lots of discussions about the occupied territories Bill and the genocide in Gaza and I have spoken on those, but Iran tends to get ignored in this context. The European Union needs to be careful about how we frame things. When the Cypriot ambassador was making a presentation to the Joint Committee on European Union Affairs yesterday, he pointed out the Middle East is one of Cyprus's priorities during its Presidency. Given our historic neutrality and our peacekeeping missions throughout the world, could Ireland continue this focus on conflicts in the Middle East, not only in Palestine, but also in countries like Iran and Sudan?

Absolutely. I forgot to say in my first answer that I will take a look at the wording of the European Parliament resolution because I am not familiar with it. However, the Deputy is right that when we talk about peace and stability in the Middle East, it is hard, or almost impossible, to have that conversation without also looking at the situation in Iran. While Ireland is neutral and will remain neutral, that means we are militarily unaligned. The principles we have in relation to international law, human rights, democracy, freedom of expression and support for freedom of assembly are not in any way in conflict with our military neutrality. In many ways, they are complementary to it. The Deputy can therefore be assured that as we prepare for our Presidency, one of the many tracks we will pursue - the Minister, Deputy McEntee, will be working up our programme for the track in relation to our values in international law - will involve keeping a firm focus on the Middle East, standing up for human rights and international law and ensuring we continue to call out the brutality being shown to peaceful protesters assembling for a better future for them and their families.