Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 21 October 2025
106. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade to provide an update on the engagement there has been at EU level on the EU-Israel agreement and the Control of Economic Activity (Occupied Territories) Bill 2018; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [57039/25]
View answer108. Deputy Seán Crowe asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the date by which the Israeli Settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (Prohibition of Importation of Goods) Bill 2025 will be introduced in Dáil Éireann; his views on whether there should be no delay in its progression amidst the lull in the conflict; his views on the fact that illegal settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem have only grown in number over the past two years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [57022/25]
View answerIn June, the Government approved the General Scheme of the Israeli Settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (Prohibition of Importation of Goods) Bill. The main purpose of the Bill is to prohibit the importation of goods into the State from Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem. The Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade has now published its report on the Bill. Work to analyse the report and its recommendations is well underway. The next steps in the process, including the timeline for the progress of the Bill, are currently being considered.
Regarding the wider issue of EU trade with Israel in the context of the EU-Israel Association Agreement, the European Commission put forward proposals in September which included the suspension of the trade elements of that Agreement. Notwithstanding the positive and welcome recent developments with regard to a ceasefire and hostage release deal in Gaza, Ireland has made clear its view that the EU must keep the package of measures proposed by the Commission in response to Israeli human rights and other breaches on the table. In her State of the Union address, the President of the European Commission was clear on the rationale for tabling the package of proposals, which remains valid.
At the Foreign Affairs Council, I welcomed the ceasefire and release of hostages and called for the EU to support efforts to flood Gaza with urgently needed humanitarian aid. Preserving the ceasefire and ensuring humanitarian access at scale is a priority. I also recalled the unacceptable nature of what has been happening in the West Bank and stressed the importance of ensuring that the concept of a two-State solution resulting in a viable, contiguous Palestinian State in the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem, remains front and centre in the EU's approach, and that all future phases of the current agreement are conducive to its implementation.
