Tá gealltanais bhriste. There are broken promises. Ar fud na tíre, tá daoine tuirseach de níos mó agus níos mó gealltanas briste. Bhris Fine Gael roinnt gealltanas a rinne sé sa toghchán deireanach. Fine Gael has broken promise after promise that it made in the most recent general election. Parents, students and disabled people were all told that help was on the way, but those election commitments were swept under the rug once the Government was formed. There is palpable anger and frustration with the Government’s failure to deliver on its word. At the 2024 election, Fine Gael promised affordable childcare costing €200 per month. It quickly forgot that promise. Fine Gael promised to phase out third level fees. Does the Minister remember that? Instead, those fees were increased. Fine Gael promised a €500 cost-of-disability payment. Instead, in the last budget, it cut the income of disabled people by up to €1,400.

The Minister's party leader, Simon Harris, promised to pass the occupied territories Bill within the first year of the Government and yet, days, weeks and months pass with no sign of the Bill in the Dáil. The occupied territories Bill was initiated in 2018. We are waiting more than eight years for the Government to progress this Bill. Last year, the Tánaiste promised that the occupied territories Bill would be brought to the Dáil by the end of November. We are now half a year past that deadline. That is yet another promise made by Fine Gael that has been broken.

The horrors in Palestine continue. The killing has not stopped and the illegal occupation is intensifying. Two weeks ago, Aws al-Nasaan, a 14-year-old boy, was murdered. While he was standing at the gate outside his secondary school in the West Bank, he was shot dead by an Israeli settler. This was part of a wave of settler violence in the occupied West Bank, primarily targeted at schools and children. Palestinian children are being murdered as they go to school while Ireland is still doing business with the companies profiting from this illegal occupation. We have a duty to stand up for the Palestinian people. We have a legal obligation to act when a genocide is taking place. Why does Fine Gael keep on making and breaking promises? When will the occupied territories Bill be brought to the Dáil?

In relation to what is happening in Gaza and specifically the West Bank, I am as appalled as the Deputy is. I think everyone in this House is equally appalled. We have what is supposed to be a ceasefire. Having visited the region and having been to Rafah only at the beginning of the year, it is clear to me that the terms of the ceasefire are not being adhered to in many instances. It is clear that what is happening in the West Bank is only escalating further. The level of settler violence is increasing. The level of destruction of homes and communities is increasing. It is for that reason that Ireland has acted throughout all of this conflict - we have led in many instances - to try to provide support to, first and foremost, bring the conflict to an end, but also to provide humanitarian aid where needed and make sure those responsible are held accountable.

We led efforts at a European level to recognise Palestine. We were one of the first countries to do so. We also have had a focus on the association agreement. Only last week at a meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council, I wrote directly to the Chair of the Council, along with my Slovenian and Spanish colleagues, asking for the suspension or partial suspension of the association agreement between the EU and Israel to be up for discussion or on the agenda when it comes to goods. I also asked for us to focus on sanctions when it comes to settler violence in the region. For the first time in a long time, we are now starting to see movement in this regard. We are starting to see countries that had not supported any kind of progress in this regard moving.

I also know that Palestine needs our continued support and funding. When I was in the region in January, I announced further funding, which brings the aid and support we are providing to the region to about €144 million. It is unfair for anyone to say that Ireland is not front and centre in providing support, leading, bringing about change and working with colleagues where we can.

When it comes to the occupied territories Bill, I came into this Department in November. At that point, the Tánaiste, who held this Ministry before me, had worked with the committee and its ask for services to be included in the Bill that had been presented previously. That work has been done. I received advice from the Attorney General before Christmas, as is the case with any legislation, particularly where when there are complex elements in it. I asked further questions and that advice has come back to me. Of course, I will now make a decision in terms of the timelines and how we progress with this.

What I would like to see happen is what we have seen in the past where countries have worked together and made progress on issues, such as recognising Palestine, working on the association agreement, providing aid and calling out issues where they emerged. Where we have worked together, we have made a greater impact and seen greater progress. I have been engaging with colleagues across those other countries where similar legislation has been introduced or is progressing to see what progress we can make. My objective and that of the Government is to make sure that this war comes to an end, that we stop people being murdered and killed and that we support those innocent civilians. We must ensure the two-state solution, which has always been this country’s focus and priority, remains a viable objective. The longer the violence in the West Bank continues, that becomes less and less viable. That is why we are taking the actions we are taking. That is why we are still committed to progressing the legislation.

We have to act because the situation is too extreme not to act. It is absolutely horrendous that school children are being murdered standing outside their school. That is taking place while Ireland still trades with companies that profit and operate in the occupied territories. That has to stop and it has to stop now. This Bill was initiated more than eight years ago. Fine Gael has been in government for all of that time. It has had ample time to get legal advice and do all of that. Eight and a half years later, it must act on the occupied territories Bill. The Minister said she has received the advice and subsequently sought clarification on that advice. Now all we are waiting on is for the Minister to make a decision. That is what she said. When will the Minister make a decision to progress this Bill? Will the Minister bring it to the Dáil in the next few weeks? Will it be passed before the summer recess? Will the Minister act urgently now? We cannot afford to wait on this any longer. When will this Bill, which we have been waiting eight and a half years on, be brought to the Dáil to get it passed?

The Deputy outlined the timeline but recently, particularly as this conflict has escalated and as more and more people have been brought into the conflict, we have acted in a way that many other countries have not. We have led in recognising Palestine. We led in advocating for more support, financial aid and assistance. We have led when it comes to the suspension of the association agreement, which I believe would have a greater impact and effect in supporting people in the West Bank and Gaza more generally. That is why I, along with my colleagues from Slovenia and Spain, wrote recently to put this back on the agenda. It is why I have advocated to ensure there are sanctions applied for those engaging in violent settler actions in the West Bank. It is also why I am engaging with my European colleagues so that as we progress this legislation, we are working collectively together to have an impact. The objective here has to be-----

When will the Bill be brought forward?

-----to make sure that we have an impact. As I said, I have received the advice. We are at the stage where I have received the advice. I have to finalise and assess that. I will then move forward after that. I have only received that advice in recent weeks. I will be able to make progress and move on it.

Everything that we do has to make sure we are able to make an impact and a positive impact for people on the ground. That is always going to be my priority when it comes to this.

I want to raise the Government's total inaction on the issue of Palestine. We have just heard the Minister talking about aid, recognising the Palestinian state and of trying to get a motion passed in the EU. These are the three things the Minister mentioned. The Minister did not mention a single sanction. I will raise a number of things the Government could be doing. In her role, it must be exhausting for the Minister trying to come up with new excuses about the occupied territories Bill with some new reason each time as to why it cannot be passed eight years on, when 350 lawyers have already signed a statement saying that it is perfectly in order.

I want to raise the plight of the people who took part in the Global Sumud Flotilla. As the Minister will know, Israeli naval forces attacked the flotilla off the coast of Greece and 180 unarmed humanitarian workers were kidnapped and assaulted. Two of them, Thiago Ávila and Saif Abu Keshek were abducted and are now detained in Israel and being tortured. I would fear for their lives. Thiago's mother has just died. Some 22 Irish people took part in the flotilla, of whom seven were also abducted by Israeli forces in international waters 1,000 km off Israeli territory and near an EU state. Three are in Greece continuing the flotilla. Martin Guilfoyle aged 75 had a gun put to his head. Catriona Graham said she was cable tied, manhandled and left without adequate food or water. They were dumped in Greece and the Greek authorities would not even help them either. Why are Irish people willing to take these risks? They are willing to do it because the flotilla was a response to the inaction of the Irish Government, of the EU state and of international states.

What exactly is Ireland's position on Israel? In theory we support the Palestinian people but in practice it is a litany of inaction. Let us consider the occupied territories Bill, for which the Minister has invented new excuses. Slovenia passed a similar Bill last August and Spain has followed suit. What is the problem with Ireland? Why are we so different? As I said, it must be exhausting. In regard to Shannon Airport, under the Minister's watch, there was a 56% surge in US military overflights last month, which coincided with the attacks on Iran and Lebanon. The Minister sees no connection between the two things and there are verbal gymnastics when she is asked to condemn these acts. When people say academic links should be ended, the Minister constantly says we should separate the two, even though the university links are with companies that are involved in the military assaults. Even with the Ireland and Israel match, the Government is pushing players to participate in that when it knows the Israeli team is steeped in apartheid, in racism and in the IDF itself. When will the Government sanction Israel?

The Government has consistently been a strong voice for the rights of Palestinian people. Whether Deputy Coppinger would like to accept that or not, or whether she agrees with me or not, that has always been the case. With every opportunity, be it within the EU or the international community, we have advocated for the rights of the Palestinian people and for a two-state solution. We have not just advocated. On top of the areas I have mentioned, where others have pulled back, we have provided humanitarian aid. We have continued to advocate for other organisations whose members I have met and whose colleagues were killed and murdered in this conflict. We have continued to advocate for them and to provide funding while making sure that at every level possible, at the UN level with our international partners, that we highlight the absolutely integral role they play. We continue to advocate for the suspension of the association agreement. For me, this is extremely important because the association agreement, or part of it, particularly when we talk of the West Bank, is at an EU level. This is where we have the greatest impact, where we effect change and how we bring about the response we need, which is that the killing stops, that what is happening in the West Bank stops, and that the pathway towards a two-state solution remains viable. When it comes to that, we have been part of an overall association that is working actively at the moment. While it seems difficult given what is going on, we are actively working to ensure that this remains the focus and the priority. We held one of the most recent conferences in Dublin with people from right across the globe, including Palestine, focused on how we can achieve that overall objective and how we can bring to bear our own experiences on our island of what seemed like an impossible solution in Northern Ireland, how we brought that to the fore, and how we brought the peace process to the fore. We are actively engaged with Palestine and with our counterparts. We are actively engaged with our colleagues right across the EU, and I am actively engaged with them to see what measures we can bring forward. We have to accept there is not a consensus in Europe at the moment when it comes to the association agreement and suspending it. I know from the discussions we had in the past few weeks that there was a shift and a change. My continued engagement with them will be to focus on how we can do more and how the EU can collectively respond and do more because I do not think we have done enough. I am happy to say, and I have said time and again, that at an EU level, I do not think we have done enough.

We have given a very clear commitment with regard to the occupied territories Bill. Legislation does not progress in the same way in different countries. Two countries have already introduced it but it was not through primary legislation and it was by a different route. At the same time, we know other countries are progressing it at the moment and I am actively engaged in working with them. Where we move in unison and where we act collectively together, we have a greater impact and we have a stronger response. This comes back to what is actually having an impact on the ground, how we are supporting people and what it is they need. When I was on the ground speaking to people, they said they need continued aid, they need continued support and they need us to advocate at a European level. That is the way to bring about the change that is needed.

An advocate and a voice but no action. That is all the Minister said, basically. Slovenia and Spain passed occupied territories Bills but Ireland will not because Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael have developed an economic model of Irish capitalism that is so interlinked with American multinationals and, therefore, they do not want to pass it.

I want to mention two issues, the first of which is the trial of an Irishman, Daniel Tatlow-Devally, in Germany. Mr. Tatlow-Devally's family has contacted the Minister and TDs to ask that his trial would be observed. Germany has become a police state, in effect, in its opposition to the Palestinian people. Daniel was led into a court with two-mile high bulletproof glass wall, so he could not engage with his solicitors, along with the other defendants. This is extremely concerning in an EU state.

With regard to the flotilla, I ask that the Minister do something concrete. They are asking for diplomatic protection, for a public investigation as to what happened, including to our own citizens who were brutalised and for economic sanctions against this criminal act by Israel. Will the Minister take action on those three things?

I am very clear that we are committed to the Bill. I am very clear on that and I cannot stress that enough. In terms of the flotilla, this is the second flotilla. With the first flotilla, our representatives on the ground responded immediately to those who were in Israel. They were some of the first citizens who were brought home. With regard to this current flotilla, I condemned outright the actions taken by Israel in international waters. This was a clear violation of international law. I made it very clear that this was a breach. We had officials on the ground who supported those people immediately and who made sure those who were brought to shore in Greece were provided with the support and assistance they required. I have to stress that our advice to people is not to travel in the region. I have condemned the actions of Israel. I have made sure our officials and our team are on the ground supporting those people but again I stress our advice is not to travel to the region. It was clear where they were headed to and the advice is not to travel. To anybody who is taken off the flotilla to decide to continue in that vein, our advice has to be to advise against that.

Again, it is not inaction and it is not just words. We are taking action. My actions in recent times in trying to bring together the European Union to respond more collectively is how I believe we will gain respect and make sure we have a greater impact.