It is very disappointing and dispiriting to learn of a yet another collapse in the talks in Northern Ireland on the formation of an Executive on foot of the Good Friday Agreement. Unless wiser heads prevail, we are looking at a third election in the North in the space of a year or so or, even worse, the reimposition of direct rule from Britain. This is at a time when the North faces major questions, not least of a budgetary nature and specifically in the context of the overarching worry of Brexit now and into the future.

The people of this island endorsed the Good Friday Agreement and in doing so created a number of expectations on an awful lot of people. In the main, those expectations rest on the shoulders of the political parties in the North. When we were negotiating peace, in which, thankfully, we succeeded, the politicians in the North received fantastic support and goodwill from various Taoisigh, Prime Ministers and US Presidents. Is it expecting too much of them now to step into the breach themselves and do what politicians are meant to do, namely, work things out? I ask the Leader to keep the House briefed on developments in the North and, if he can, have the Taoiseach to attend to brief Members. We are all politicians and I will not point the finger of blame at any particular party. When it comes to it, however, the national interest, in this case in the formation of a Government in the North, is far more important than the preoccupations or vanities of any particular party.

Colleagues will remember that I raised previously the unilateral and unjustified closing down of the bank accounts of the Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign by the Bank of Ireland at the behest of the Israeli Government. Last night, I spoke at a TED Talks event in Trinity College before which there was a sponsored reception in the on-campus premises of the Bank of Ireland. When a spokesperson for the bank talked about encouraging the exchange of ideas and freedom of speech, I shouted up to ask why, in that case, the bank unilaterally closed down the accounts of the Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign. While I was then love-bombed by the staff of Bank of Ireland, I subsequently discovered the students were contacted and told their sponsorship might be withdrawn. It is a most extraordinary thing. This morning, I contacted the TED Talks people in Trinity to find out the amount of the sponsorship so that I could cover it in the event that the bank withdrew it. I was told, however, that the matter was covered by confidentiality clauses. So much for Bank of Ireland, freedom of expression and the exchange of ideas. This hypocrisy richly deserves to be exposed.