Ba mhaith liom beannachtaí na bliana úra a bhronnadh ar an Tánaiste agus ar bhaill an Rialtais go léir. Tá súil agam go raibh sos maith acu. Mar is eol dóibh, ní bhfuair pobal an Trá Ghearr i mBéal Feirste sos ar bith le linn na seachtaine seo chaite.

I am sure the Tánaiste is concerned about events that occurred in recent weeks in the North. While these events should not be exaggerated, they show the need for constant and consistent support for both the political and peace processes and - despite all its other obligations - for the Government to focus on matters of this nature. The Tánaiste will be aware that the Good Friday Agreement states that symbols and emblems should be used in a manner which promotes mutual respect rather than division. This recognises the reality that there are two flags to which the vast majority of people in the Six Counties give their allegiance, namely, the Union flag and the Irish tricolour. For this reason, some councils fly no flags while at Stormont and at other councils' buildings the Union flag flies on designated days only.

Belfast City Council took legal advice on this issue. In addition, it received advice from the Equality Commission and an equality impact assessment was carried out. The decision made in December was in keeping with the advice, etc., received and, ironically enough, with the protocols which obtain in Britain. It was a democratic decision and was entirely proper and appropriate. Democratic and peaceful opposition to it would also be proper. I am sure the Tánaiste will agree, however, that the violent sectarian reaction is entirely wrong, that the illegal protests must be brought to an end before someone is killed and that the attacks on the Short Strand community need to stop. I visited Short Strand on Sunday and the Deputy First Minister is there today. Short Strand is a community under siege. There have been 16 illegal loyalist marches in recent weeks and also countless sectarian interface protests.

Since the recent violence began, the Deputy First Minister has - as the Tánaiste, in light of the fact that his Department has been in contact with the Executive in the North, will be aware - has been endeavouring to bring about all-party opposition to the violence and the protests and continues to do so. The Tánaiste will recall that when two British soldiers were killed in 2009 and when two PSNI officers were killed sometime later, Martin McGuinness stood shoulder to shoulder with Peter Robinson and, in an extremely robust way, set out opposition to those dreadful events. He also led a robust all-party and cross-community response. There was no equivocation. A similar all-party approach is again required.

I ask the Tánaiste to join in calling for an all-party, cross-community response in order to bring these illegal and violent protests to an end. I also ask him to visit east Belfast tomorrow - I presume he will do so - and meet the people there, particularly those who live in the Short Strand area and in the loyalist areas adjacent to it.

Ar dtús, ba mhaith liom beannachtaí na hathbhliana a bhronnadh ar an Teachta Adams agus ar gach Ball den Teach. I am aware that the Deputy had surgery recently and I wish him a good recovery.

The Government and I are extremely concerned with regard to what has been taking place in Belfast and elsewhere in recent weeks. I refer to the widespread street violence that has occurred, to the attacks on members of the Police Service of Northern Ireland, including the attempted murder of police officers, and to the many attempts that have been made to intimidate public representatives and their families. I have condemned these events unreservedly.

As the Deputy is aware I have remained in contact with the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Theresa Villiers, and with all the party leaders in Northern Ireland, throughout that period. Over the past week, I have spoken with Peter Robinson, Martin McGuinness, David Ford, Mike Nesbitt and Alasdair McDonnell. I will be travelling to Belfast tomorrow morning to meet with the Secretary of State and the First Minister and Deputy First Minister. Officials from my Department continue to work closely with the British Government and with political representatives in Northern Ireland to identify ways to address not just the current crisis but also its underlying problems. My officials have been keeping in close contact with the situation on the ground. They visited St. Matthew's church and the Short Strand community yesterday and they reported to me extensively on the local situation. I am concerned by reports that the attacks on houses in the Short Strand were premeditated and I condemn them. I will be discussing that matter with the Secretary of State and the First Minister and Deputy First Minister when I meet them tomorrow. I hope to visit the Short Strand area and other community interfaces in the near future.

The economic cost of recent events is becoming apparent. Apart from the cost of the policing operation which is estimated at €7 million, foreign direct investment, the retail trade and tourism are all at risk. The Confederation of British Industry director in Northern Ireland has warned of the economic damage being inflicted on local businesses, tourism and investment.

It is my hope that out of this setback we will see a redoubling of efforts to achieve a genuinely reconciled society in Northern Ireland. It is a reminder to all of us that the peace process is exactly that: a process which still has some way to go. Both political co-operation and security co-operation on this island have never been better and we can rely on those relationships of trust and on the resilience of the Good Friday Agreement to create space for progress beyond the current difficulties.

The Irish Government has no closer political relationship than with the Northern Ireland Executive. Over the past year alone, the Taoiseach, other Ministers and I have met with members of the Northern Ireland Executive on more than 50 occasions. The persistence of sectarianism in Northern Ireland and the absence of agreement on the shared future agenda contribute to the likelihood of incidents such as those we have witnessed in recent weeks. Building relationships between divided communities takes time and a sustained effort and investment. I wish to assure the Deputy and the House that this Government is committed to doing just that.

I thank the Tánaiste for his best wishes. I thank him also for his response. I am pleased he will travel to meet with the First Minister and the Deputy First Minister tomorrow. I have been in contact, as have other Belfast representatives, with the Tánaiste's Department. I suggest he should try to carve out time tomorrow to meet with people in those communities. I appreciate the ongoing work. I also understand very much the many responsibilities which the Government has, not least on the economic front. However, as the Tánaiste says, the peace process cannot be taken for granted. What is needed is an ongoing, steady, almost invisible engagement by Ministers right across all sectors in the North.

We also need to explore some of the people who are behind these protests. The British National Party is engaged in whipping up these tensions and fears. The Ulster Volunteer Force is also heavily involved. Those attacks were premeditated over recent evenings. An issue which this Dáil has to address and which everyone who lives on this island has to address is sectarianism. It has to be tackled. I am from Belfast. These protesters do not represent the vast majority of people in Belfast. The vast majority of people in Belfast are living in a modern city which has many proud traditions and which they want to see shared on the basis of equality. That is the view; that is what we have come through in the past 40 years and that is what the vast majority of people have settled for. The Government needs to continue to underpin both in this State as well as in the Northern State, principles of equality, parity of esteem and mutual respect.

I am not lecturing but just making the point that this issue needs constant attention and must not be taken for granted. It is only by the grace of God that someone has not been killed. All representatives of civic society, the community and the political and business classes must stand shoulder to shoulder against what is a very small minority.

It does have to be said that it is a very small minority. People have a right to protest. Someone who is unhappy with a democratic decision made by the elected members of Belfast City Council is entitled to protest against that decision, and we defend that right. However, people are not entitled to fire petrol bombs at the police and intimidate and threaten elected public representatives, including some of those who were involved in making the decision in question. They do not have the right to disrupt the normal business life of Belfast and other areas in the way they have done. It must stop.

The Deputy is correct that it is required that the political leaders in Northern Ireland stand shoulder to shoulder. He will have heard from the Deputy First Minister that I have been very much in touch with the latter and other political leaders since this problem arose before Christmas. We had hoped it would die down over Christmas and the new year period but it has continued.

The original plan was that tomorrow's meeting would be held on Friday but there were problems at the Belfast end over people being available. I was anxious that the meeting would not be postponed. There is a Cabinet meeting tomorrow afternoon on the jobs crisis, which is very important. I decided that, rather than coming here for Leaders' Questions tomorrow and instead of postponing the meeting until next week, it would be appropriate for me to have it tomorrow. I do not want to see this matter long-fingered. We want to deal with it now and work with the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland. I have been in touch with the latter regularly about what has been taking place with a view to having both Governments provide support to the political leadership and the Northern Ireland Executive in order to get on top of the situation and put an end to the street violence that has been taking place. It is also a matter of addressing the issues at the root of the problem. They relate to shared society, people's concerns and dealing with the problem of sectarianism in Northern Ireland, which the Deputy has rightly identified.