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TÁNAISTE MICHÉAL MARTIN has said he is optimistic about the future of Northern Ireland but that there’s no place for complacency.
He was speaking at the British Irish Association Conference in Oxford, England.
He urged people not to take the Good Friday Agreement for granted.
Acknowledging the rioting in Belfast last month, he said there is “no perfect solution” to violence in Northern Ireland, but that the Troubles Legacy Act is not fit for purpose.
The controversial Act came into effect on 1 May.
A Commission took over the role of investigating hundreds of unresolved legacy deaths and cases of serious harm which happened before the signing of the Good Friday Agreement in 1998.
The PSNI no longer has responsibility for investigating unsolved crimes relating to the Troubles.
Taoiseach Simon Harris said the government will not immediately drop its legal case against the UK government over the Act following Labour’s general election victory.
Speaking today, the Tánaiste said that the relationship between Ireland and the UK has been tested in recent years.
“Brexit shook the foundations of established relationships and ways of working. Its implementation and outworkings created new fault lines in a society that did not need more causes of division.
“We ultimately managed to navigate all of that complexity – and are still doing so – in a way that maintained the principles and the institutions of the Good Friday Agreement and that safeguarded the interests of the people of Northern Ireland.”
Despite this, he said, unilateral decisions by the previous British government made partnership and reconciliation difficult.
“Throughout the eight years since Brexit, the devolved institutions have been in abeyance for more time than they have been up and running,” said Martin.
There is absolutely no room for complacency about that; not in Northern Ireland, not anywhere across these islands.
“I’ve said before that I believe that the public in Northern Ireland would have zero tolerance for another cycle of suspension, disenfranchisement and political torpor,” he said.
“In my view, that means having honest conversations about the practical functioning and management of the institutions. You can call that reform; you can call it political stability; you can call it whatever you want – what’s important is that it is tangible and impactful.”
Harris and his British counterpart Keir Starmer are to meet and attend the Ireland V England UEFA Nations’ League match at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin together later today.
In a joint article in the Irish Times today, the two leaders said they wanted relations between their countries to go from “friction to friendship”.
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They should really teach kids about giant hogweed in schools. It is truly horrific stuff.
@Chop Chop: Before some smartarse says it, I’m not saying there’s hogweed IN the schools. It was poor phrasing on my part. It’s late.
@Chop Chop: your handle means I’ll take u very seriously on anything u have to say on this topic
@Danny O’Mahony: U da man danny
@Danny O’Mahony: Never mind the handle, you should see the couple of scars on my leg.
@Danny O’Mahony: Never mind the handle, you should see the couple of scars on my leg.
@Chop Chop: You got lucky! I know people that required surgery to remove scaring!
If the council ask for the publics help there would be 1000s of volunteers to help with this problem. National parks & wildlife could recruit secondary school teenagers as well. Maybe even the work shy could be deployed, they can earn their money by helping the environment.
@Dean Carroll: Teenagers handling poison and dangerous equipment, yup that’s a good solution. I’d even be wary of letting adults volunteers near that stuff.
@Jason Walsh: what about a wood saw and gloves? No chemicals. Cut down Laurel, Rhododendron. Manually weed etc.
Climate change promotions opportunity missed by the journal Climate cultists.
@087 bed Has nothing to do with Climate Change you nonce. knotweed was introduced by some clown Lord, 100s of years ago in the UK to run along train-lines, the morons assumed it would be grand, the root structure is highly invasive. Our street in London had some and rendered the nearby houses unsellable/unliveable… Apparently in its native country’s there’s a particular grub that eats the root and controls the spread, that bug doesn’t survive here. Was very surprised to see it here when we returned, as it wasn’t around when I was a kid. You wont get a mortgage if these weeds are anywhere near.
@087 bed: You and the other that liked your post have no idea what the article is about. Read it, google it and learn the real problems that are happening all over the country and the damage it does.
@Thesaltyurchin: It was brought in by fancy gardeners and escaped same as the Hogweed. It escaped from the Botanical Gardens!
@Gary Kearney: Apologies, it was a “Sir” rather than a lord. “The invasive plant Japanese knotweed (Fallopia japonica) was introduced to the UK by Sir Robert Fortune. He brought it to Britain in 1850s from Japan, where it was originally native”
I see in Canada some areas let loose a herd of goats and sometimes herds of sheep who devour these type of weeds that are harmful, should Ireland look at this as a solution?
@Ned: I’ve seen goats grazing council land in the Netherlands. This country has so many sheep too and they’re just standing around doing nothing
@Ned: But then someone can’t get rich off govt contracts!!!….. Maybe set the goats up with bank accounts and then put them to work at the expense of the taxpayer. The money is there to be thrown away as per usual!
@Ned: It’s the roots are the problem, and they multiply in size when the plants are cut.
@Darth O’Leary: Are they not grazing like normal sheep or do they stand and stare ?
@Lulu: let’s tap into the power of sheep is all I’m saying. Might make for less lean chop but we could cut down on the glyphosate
As you drive around take note of the trees, hedges and historical buildings being swallowed up by ivy. Everything that’s growing being choked with the stuff.
Good journalism Big problem here round my patch
Argument can me made its natural evolution
All plants and all successful species increase their range over time
Homo Sapiens being the prime example
Heartbreaking to see native species disappearing all the same
Ash being a tragic example
But that’s mother nature
99% of all lifeforms that have ever existed are extinct
As Frank Sinatra famously put it
That’s life
@Danny O’Mahony: Watch out, it will destroy any structure nearby, soon enough the banks will pulling back from investing in mortgages where this could happen.
Japanese knot weed is beloved by bee keepers for its late flowers. All the plants in Ireland are female I’m and it cannot seed here. It actually spreads quite slowly. It’s related to rhubarb and the young shoots can be used the same way in tarts and desserts (and as a veg with your dinner if you’re Dutch). Articles like this never mention that. Livestock, especially goats, love it. I had it on a property a few years ago in an area I was planting trees on, and after a few years it was shaded out.
Fuscia is a major invasive plant, but no one mentions it, cos it’s pretty.
@Seosamh mac Cárthaigh: The fact that if disturbed small sections of it, as little as 0.7g, can re-grow into a new plant is the problem. It doesn’t need to go to seed to spread.
Cork is heavily affected. The biggest culprit for spreading knotweed has been the flail verge trimmers which spread the mown plant matter extensively along roadside for miles. This fact was only detected in recent times but the damage had been done. “Do not mow” signs are erected by councils. As happens every year on the Cork-Kinsale road the contractors ignore the signs and mow away. No checking by City Council. How can you win with such people in charge?
Not surprised with Louth Co Co position on the league table. Totally ineffective. Wipe their hands totally on eradication of knotweed…… Speaking from experience!!!
We humans are the biggest invasive species of all time! I’m just putting it out there!
A supermarket chain was selling rhododendron plants last summer.
@Pork Hunt: You can buy horticultural varieties at any garden centre. The article is talking about a specific species, that is a problem. The garden stuff is fine.
Add to this the malicious spreading of Japanese Knotweed onto proposed development sites to dissuade development of the land. It’s not a conspiracy theory either.
Incursio bona?
What about the non-native trees escaping from forestry plantations around ireland as well???
Japanese Lilac is another invasive species that does massive damage.
The butterfly tree as I knew it as a child. They love it. It chews up building however! It is extremly difficult to kill as grows very fast as well.
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