Children's mental health report and Brexit concerns
Senator Conway-Walsh welcomed the committee's mental health report but stressed implementation, then shifted to criticism of Government remarks on a Border poll and Irish unity. Interjections aside, the main issue became the Good Friday Agreement and the Taoiseach's comments on a future vote.
I commend the Leas-Chathaoirleach on his work as Chair of the Seanad Public Consultation Committee on children's mental health services, as well as Senator Freeman and all the other members of that committee on producing its report. I thank in particular the parents who were courageous enough to come forward to tell the committee about their experiences, which I think has informed the report in a very positive way. However, like A Vision for Change, it is all in the implementation and how effectively the recommendations within this report will be implemented. I look forward to a full discussion and debate on this in the Seanad in the near future.
Turning to the main business I wish to raise, I was glad to see that the Taoiseach attended several engagements in Derry last week and I welcome his comments about Brexit and the devastating consequences it will have on the Border communities and indeed the entire island of Ireland. I particularly welcome his focus on the internal strife in the Tory party. This is the Tory party that is advising my leader's party on how it should communicate. The shambolic attitude of the British Government to the Border-----
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Is that the one page that cost €5 million to put out?
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Where is Sinn Féin's money coming from?
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I am talking about the Tories. Their attitude can be summed up as "we do not know and we do not care". However, I am concerned about the remarks the Taoiseach made about the Good Friday Agreement and the provision of a Border poll. The Taoiseach said he would be uncomfortable with a situation in which there was a vote of 50% plus one in favour of Irish unity but it is simply not up to him to decide. The agreement is explicit in recognising "the legitimacy of whatever choice is freely exercised by a majority of the people of Northern Ireland with regard to its status, whether they prefer to continue to support the Union with Great Britain or a sovereign united Ireland". The Good Friday Agreement is a legally binding international agreement. It was hard fought for and involved all democratic political parties in the North along with the two Governments and international partners. The Taoiseach cannot now cite the agreement when arguing against the excesses of Brexit and then cherry-pick the parts with which he is uncomfortable. In the same interview the Taoiseach rightly called for the extension of marriage equality to the North. If there were a referendum on this issue, would he accept a 50%-plus-one result? He also referred to the fact that the majority of the North voted to remain within the EU. Was this majority good enough for him in this case? The Good Friday Agreement contains many provisions that were unpalatable to republicans. In spite of this, Sinn Féin honoured and worked on all aspects of it. It is unacceptable now that the Taoiseach, as a representative of one of the co-guarantors of the Good Friday Agreement, should seek to undermine one of its core principles. It was not too long ago that the only contribution about the North from politicians and commentators in this jurisdiction was to quote the principle of consent ad nauseam. Now when the prospect of a united Ireland is raised they cite stability and getting everybody on board. The Taoiseach's comments have caused uncertainty and are really unhelpful. The Irish Government needs to defend the Good Friday Agreement in its entirety and work to achieve any outcome that is democratically expressed by the people.