Naoise Ó Cearúil
Ceist:1. Deputy Naoise Ó Cearúil asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his attendance at the G20 in South Africa. [66790/25]
Ceisteanna - Questions
Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements
Ruairí Ó Murchú
Ceist:2. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his attendance at the G20 in South Africa. [1833/26]
Ruth Coppinger
Ceist:3. Deputy Ruth Coppinger asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his attendance at the G20 in South Africa. [3747/26]
Richard Boyd Barrett
Ceist:4. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his attendance at the G20 in South Africa. [3922/26]
Paul Murphy
Ceist:5. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his attendance at the G20 in South Africa. [3925/26]
Duncan Smith
Ceist:6. Deputy Duncan Smith asked the Taoiseach for a report on his attendance at the G20 in South Africa. [4037/26]
Rose Conway-Walsh
Ceist:7. Deputy Rose Conway-Walsh asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his attendance at the G20 in South Africa; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4087/26]
Liam Quaide
Ceist:8. Deputy Liam Quaide asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his attendance at the G20 in South Africa. [5585/26]
Darren O'Rourke
Ceist:9. Deputy Darren O'Rourke asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his attendance at the G20 in South Africa. [5795/26]
Malcolm Byrne
Ceist:10. Deputy Malcolm Byrne asked the Taoiseach for a report on his attendance at the G20 in South Africa. [5810/26]
Shane Moynihan
Ceist:11. Deputy Shane Moynihan asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his attendance at the G20 in South Africa. [5811/26]
Pádraig O'Sullivan
Ceist:12. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his attendance at the G20 in South Africa. [5814/26]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 1 to 12, inclusive, together.
I attended the G20 leaders’ summit in Johannesburg, South Africa on 22 and 23 November last. Ireland was among a small number of guest countries invited by South Africa to participate in the G20 during its Presidency, the first time for Ireland to do so. I take the opportunity to again thank the South African Presidency for this invitation and for facilitating our engagement at all levels over the course of its 12 months in office. The G20 brings the world’s largest economies together to discuss some of the most significant challenges we collectively face, including sustainable economic growth and development.
Irish Ministers and officials attended over 130 meetings throughout the year, working on a range of issues including sustainability, climate, trade and economic relations, global development and development in Africa. Throughout the year, Ireland sought to make a positive contribution, based on our strong commitment to multilateralism and global development.
The two-day summit I attended in Johannesburg in November was the culmination of the South African Presidency. It was the first G20 summit held on African soil, a very welcome development. The meeting adopted the Johannesburg G20 leaders’ declaration, in which we reiterated our unwavering commitment to act in accordance with international law, including international humanitarian law and the Charter of the United Nations. The declaration focused on important issues considered during the South African Presidency, including disaster resilience, debt sustainability, financing the energy transition, access to critical minerals and securing inclusive economic growth.
At the summit, I formally addressed sessions on inclusive and sustainable economic growth - leaving no one behind, and a resilient world - the G20’s contribution. In my contributions I advocated for economic growth to be inclusive, resilient and sustainable, and for support for the most vulnerable communities impacted by climate change.
In the margins, I had several bilateral meetings, including with the Prime Minister of Singapore, Lawrence Wong, the Prime Minister of Australia, Anthony Albanese, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Keir Starmer, and the president of the African Development Bank, Sidi Ould Tah.
I also attended a meeting of the coalition of the willing in the margins of the G20 leaders’ summit in South Africa. Leaders reiterated our unwavering support for Ukraine and its territorial integrity.
I took part in a Global Citizen NOW event co-hosted by South Africa and the European Union where I announced a pledge of €5 million to the International Energy Agency’s clean energy transitions programme.
I also attended the Eighth Replenishment Summit of the Global Fund, co-hosted by the governments of South Africa and the United Kingdom, where I announced increased support to the Global Fund of €72 million over the next three years, underlining Ireland’s ongoing support for global health initiatives to combat HIV-AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria.
While in South Africa, I also had a number of economic, community and bilateral meetings and events, including addressing an Enterprise Ireland lunch with Irish business leaders, a community event and a Bord Bia event.
One of the G20 members, namely, India, and the European Union today announced the progression of a free-trade agreement which has been almost two decades in the making and will impact over 2 billion people. Has the Government assessed any particular issues, risks and indeed opportunities for Ireland in the EU-India free trade agreement? Has it assessed what the ratification process will mean for Ireland?
At the G20 a serious amount of the conversation is on sustainable development. With Storm Chandra, it is fair to say we can see that is not necessarily happening in relation to climate change. We could all come in here and pontificate on the failings of the American President with all the desperate scenarios both domestically in America and internationally. We hope some chickens are coming home to roost and that some sense will prevail but we just cannot tell at this point.
I have brought up that my own home town is under severe pressure. Not only do we need to make sure we deal with the issue of climate change, we have to be able to provide the mitigations that are necessary. While huge work is being done by Louth County Council and the fire service, we have a huge level of flooding in Bay Estate, Cluan Enda and Castletown Road as well as out by the Carrickdale hotel on the way north. There could be an element of mitigation that we need to look at. An element of that work needs to be done afterwards while hoping nothing worse happens this evening.
Donald Trump and the US Government chose to boycott the G20 in South Africa on the spurious and ridiculous grounds that there was a genocide going on against white people in South Africa. Of course, the real reason he boycotted it is because South Africa has led the charge against the Israeli genocide in Gaza, rightly indicting the criminals who have committed the genocide against Palestinians and because actually it is a place where masses of people rose up internationally against an apartheid racist regime. Of course, the last countries to join the international boycott against apartheid South Africa were Britain and America, which tells us everything really. Given what is happening now in Minneapolis, with the same Trump who boycotted the G20 on those grounds executing protesters and defending and justifying it, I wonder whether the Taoiseach should indicate his support for those protesting on the streets of Minneapolis against these cruel attacks on protesters.
It really says something when the US boycotts the G20 in South Africa on the grounds of the racist conspiracy theory of white genocide. It is a conspiracy theory propagated by those who want South Africa to go back to apartheid. It is illustrative of a regime that is ruled by a monstrous bully who has torn up any semblance of pretending to care about international law, if US imperialism ever did. Since the start of this year the Americans have kidnapped a president and killed over 100 people in that country of Venezuela, they have threatened to annex Greenland, they have invented this Board of Peace made up of war criminals and authoritarians, and now Donald Trump is excusing and lying about the execution of their own citizens on the streets of Minneapolis by ICE, a state authority. Is the Taoiseach seriously still planning to go to give him a bowl of shamrock and allow him to greenwash himself, to present himself as a friend of the Irish when an Irish grandmother was detained for five months by ICE and when undocumented Irish people are afraid to leave their homes? Why not give the shamrock to them instead of Donald Trump?
The US boycotted the G20 in South Africa on these spurious grounds, further isolating itself from traditional allies. The Taoiseach will go to the White House in couple of months; of that there is no doubt. However, considering what is happening on the streets of Minneapolis, considering the large numbers of members of the Irish diaspora in the United States - that is not to make an exceptional case of the Irish; it is all immigrants and indeed all citizens of the United States who are under threat from ICE - will the Taoiseach use his meeting with the US President as an opportunity to raise the huge human rights concerns we have as a civilised nation, a nation that welcomes immigrants and welcomes asylum seekers, or at least should do, although the Government is rowing back on that? Will he raise that with Donald Trump and ensure, whether it is Irish people living in the United States or other minority groups, that Ireland has their back and we will put pressure on the United States to withdraw its policy in relation to ICE and immigration?
I welcome Margaret Loftus to the Public Gallery. The Taoiseach will know she is a courageous and brave former garda, a survivor of horrific domestic violence whose traumatic experience in seeking justice highlights the urgent need for systemic legislative reform in this country.
I want to ask the Taoiseach about the nature and substance of his engagements at the G20 summit specifically in relation to gender-based violence and domestic violence. Were these issues discussed at leader or ministerial level? Can the Taoiseach report on any progress made, commitments secured or concrete arrangements reached as a result of these discussions? How were Ireland's position and the lived experience of survivors like Margaret represented? How will any outcomes from the G20 translate into tangible protections, accountability and access to justice for victims and survivors here in Ireland? It begs the question as to how we can ever adopt a zero tolerance approach to domestic violence here when the judicial system and the Garda Síochána do not have adequate checks and balances to ensure people like Margaret do not go through the same thing.
Gabhaim buíochas leis an Taoiseach as ucht an nuacht sin a thabhairt don Teach maidir leis an gcruinniú G20. Like Deputy Ó Cearúil I welcome that the EU-India free-trade deal has been finalised today, and the excellent opportunities that provides for SMEs and exporters in our country.
What sense did the Taoiseach get from members of the G20 of the importance of continuing to form free-trade deals across the globe and showing multilateralism and free trade is the right approach to take in order to confirm prosperity and peace for everyone?
South Africa is a great friend of Ireland and President Ramaphosa was one of the weapons inspectors during the Northern Ireland peace process. There is a strong voice for Africa in this year's G20 summit, which will be hosted by the United States. Ireland will be making it clear that Africa needs to have a voice at this global table.
I thank all the Deputies for raising these issues. This was the first time ever Ireland was invited to be a participant at the G20. It is interesting some people questioned whether I should attend. We have a strong pro-development agenda in Ireland through our development aid programme across different Departments but mainly delivered through the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and through Irish Aid. Within that is a strong financial provision and policy around women and girls in conflict and domestic abuse. Margaret Lotus is in the Gallery and I appreciate her bravery and courage in coming forward to tell her story, so we can continue to improve our legislation and the transparency of our agencies, Garda, Defence Forces and so forth.
Deputy Ó Cearúil referred to diversification of trade. There is a need for global engagement. We need to engage on a global level with as many countries as possible. The world has dramatically changed since the time of apartheid in South Africa and is a much more interdependent world today than it was back then.
I had some very good meetings with Cyril Ramaphosa. I met him on quite a number of occasions. He remembers fondly the time he spent in Ireland helping to decommission weapons. He has the odd humorous anecdote about where he had to go to find some of those weapons and verify their destruction and decommissioning. What was interesting in the declaration was that he skilfully got an outcome, notwithstanding the fact the US was not formally represented but it was at the negotiations in some respects. Other countries were as well.
On the trade issue, the EU-India trade agreement is positive. I have to go through the details of it. If you take the Europe-Canada trade agreement, Irish trade has exponentially grown as a result of that Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement, CETA. There is a lot of opposition in the House to it, which I find hard to comprehend. Many Irish small and medium-size companies have done well through exporting goods and services. Many of our multinationals do well also, which improves Irish jobs.
India is an important market. It is enormous. This is a historic agreement and it counteracts the push towards protectionism and a tariff-based approach the US has initiated through its policies. Europe is endeavouring to create a counter approach which involves doing trade deals with others and easing trade between different blocs and markets across the world. It is interesting that Canada is pivoting more to Europe as a result of that changed global position in terms of trade.
On my visit to China, not only did we get the beef market reopened but it was interesting the Chinese leadership said it acknowledged the interdependence of the world and wanted smoother trading relationships with Europe. There are issues on both sides there: industrial resilience, strategic autonomy and so forth. This is a significant agreement the Commission has arrived at with India. I will get further clarity on the precise mechanisms for agreement on that. There are various mechanisms through which trade deals or aspects of trade deals can be ratified. CETA, for example, was a provisional agreement. We have yet to ratify it but are bringing legislation to the House to do so. Notwithstanding that fact, it has entered provisionally and we have had tremendous growth.
A very good document was commissioned by our embassy on the impact of CETA on Ireland and Canada's trade. Our embassy has produced that and it is a very good snapshot of the dramatic improvements. I envisage something similar in India. In the early 2000s, we took a trade mission to India to try to create a significant base for the first time. There were about five Ministers and the then Taoiseach. The idea was to open up India. We did similar with China and look what has happened. The trade has exponentially grown both ways and we have a surplus with China. Likewise, there is lots of potential in Europe-India and the impact on Ireland.
Deputy Ó Murchú skilfully wove the G20 and County Louth together in respect of adaptation and mitigation measures.
Irish Water infrastructure as well.
It is a fair point. When you attend these meetings, you see the enormous impact of climate on many African countries, resulting in migration, economic disruption and significant disruption of food production systems. The area of mitigation and adaptation is one we need to focus on more urgently, globally and in Ireland. I will talk to the Minister on the specific issues the Deputy raised.
If you look at the weather over the past while, it is changing. Climate is changing. The ground is saturated. It is a serious issue. After Storm Éowyn we did a fundamental review of certain areas - power corridors and so on - and brought in legislation to clarify powers of EirGrid and the ESB vis-á-vis landowners and to have a comprehensive solution to that. There were also generators for Irish Water, generators for community hubs and stronger resourcing of community-based organisations to develop greater resilience on the ground, given the severity of storms that have happened and that are coming our way. Storm Chandra is the latest manifestation of that and serious flooding has resulted from it.
The US President did not turn up at G20, although he met with President Ramaphosa earlier in the White House. I had good meetings with President Ramaphosa during our visit to South Africa. There is a degree of self-confidence in the South African approach. South Africa invited Ireland, which speaks volumes for the Irish position on the issues Deputy Boyd Barrett raised. Despite what gets said in the House, South Africa was minded to invite Ireland because of the role we play globally. We are serious. Our officials attended about 130 meetings. Our Ministers did as well. We took it very seriously. We engaged constructively. There is a range of issues like agriculture; anti-corruption; culture; development; digital economy; disaster risk reduction - our officials, the sherpas, were working on that area; education; employment; empowerment of women; energy transitions; environment and climate sustainability; health; research and innovation; tourism; and trade and investment. There is a variety of workshops throughout the year.
The debt burden on developing countries was probably the most critical issue that emerged at the G20 summit. It was raised by a lot of African nations. The G20 leaders' declaration acknowledges that debt vulnerabilities, along with other factors, can constrain countries' fiscal space and undermine their ability to deal with poverty and inequality and their capacity to invest in growth and development. Interest payments on public debt have more than doubled over the past decade for low-income countries. It hampers their capacity to lift people out of poverty. There is a need for multilateral development banks to develop more liberal policies in respect of that. The commitment to empowering women and girls and to urgently removing social and economic barriers to gender equity was reaffirmed by the G20 summit.
Then there is a whole range of other issues in terms of food security.
On the Board of Peace, we met the European Union last week. Obviously, we have very significant concerns in terms of its broad remit. What Europe and Ireland are interested in is the application to Gaza and whether there is a role for the EU in respect of the second phase of the peace process within Gaza. All of the hostages have now been released. I spoke to the Prime Minister of the Palestinian Authority last week in Davos and he said the most immediate need is shelter. There is an absolutely urgent need in Gaza for shelter. He believes aid is coming in but it is in a very haphazard way in the sense that a lot of basic vital stuff like proteins and that is not coming in to the degree that is necessary. We need a more comprehensive approach. I had a very brief meeting with Tom Fletcher, and a number of Irish officials are doing everything they can to contribute and to help. That is an area on which we are very focused in terms of our engagement with the US both at European and Irish level.
Deputy Shane Moynihan again raised the issue of the EU-India trade agreement. Diversification of markets is the key and the opening up of new markets with a view to benefiting world trade more generally, but also our own country. We are a small exporting country. As we export 90% of what we produce, instinctively trade deals are better for us in that scenario. Taking drink products alone, such as whiskey and so on, the tariffs are enormous now. After a trade deal, they come way down. That is very good news for producers of that kind. Obviously, we can go through it sector by sector later, but it will be significant.
I thank the Taoiseach. We will now move to the next questions. Question Nos. 13 to 23 are grouped.
EU Summits
Malcolm Byrne
Ceist:13. Deputy Malcolm Byrne asked the Taoiseach for a report on his attendance at the EU-African Union summit. [68211/25]
Ruairí Ó Murchú
Ceist:14. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Taoiseach for a report on his attendance at the EU-African Union summit. [1834/26]
Ruth Coppinger
Ceist:15. Deputy Ruth Coppinger asked the Taoiseach for a report on his attendance at the EU-African Union summit. [3748/26]
Duncan Smith
Ceist:16. Deputy Duncan Smith asked the Taoiseach for a report on his attendance at the EU-African Union summit. [4038/26]
Liam Quaide
Ceist:17. Deputy Liam Quaide asked the Taoiseach for a report on his attendance at the EU-African Union summit. [5586/26]
Darren O'Rourke
Ceist:18. Deputy Darren O'Rourke asked the Taoiseach for a report on his attendance at the EU-African Union summit. [5796/26]
Shane Moynihan
Ceist:19. Deputy Shane Moynihan asked the Taoiseach for a report on his attendance at the EU-African Union summit. [5812/26]
Naoise Ó Cearúil
Ceist:20. Deputy Naoise Ó Cearúil asked the Taoiseach for a report on his attendance at the EU-African Union summit. [5813/26]
Pádraig O'Sullivan
Ceist:21. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Taoiseach for a report on his attendance at the EU-African Union summit. [5815/26]
Richard Boyd Barrett
Ceist:22. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his attendance at the EU-African Union summit. [6012/26]
Paul Murphy
Ceist:23. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his attendance at the EU-African Union summit. [6015/26]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 13 to 23, inclusive, together.
I attended the seventh EU-African Union summit, which took place on 24 and 25 November 2025 in Luanda, Angola. The summit, which took place the day after the G20, was co-chaired by the President of Angola, João Lourenço, and the President of the European Council, António Costa. The summit marked 25 years of strategic partnership between the EU and the African Union. The theme of the summit was Advancing Peace and Prosperity through Effective Multilateralism, underlining the importance of the multilateral system and the centrality of partnership to address the most pressing challenges we face in an interconnected and very uncertain world. Given Ireland’s strong support for the United Nations and the principles of the UN Charter, I intervened in a session on multilateralism. I spoke about how multilateralism is core to Ireland’s foreign policy and our firm commitment to a strong, rules-based multilateral system with the UN at its heart.
Leaders agreed a joint declaration which reflects the main outcomes of the summit. The European Union and the African Union committed to upholding the rules and principles of the UN Charter, including those of sovereignty and territorial integrity and political independence. Guided by these rules and principles, unwavering support was reiterated for a just, comprehensive and lasting peace in Ukraine, in the occupied Palestinian territory, Sudan, South Sudan, the DRC, the Sahel, Somalia and other wars and conflicts around the globe. The joint declaration also includes a focus on a deepened economic, trade and investment partnership. The European Union is the top trading partner of African countries collectively. African countries together constitute the EU’s fourth-largest trading partner.
Significant progress was welcomed in the implementation of the global gateway Africa-Europe investment package in areas of mutual interest, reflecting a shared commitment to inclusive sustainable development. The unwavering commitment of the European Union and the African Union to continued partnership and mutually beneficial investment in green and climate-resilient initiatives in the areas of energy, transport and digital infrastructure was reaffirmed. Leaders further reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening dialogue and enhancing co-operation on peace, security and governance. They also recommitted to working together on supporting democracy, inclusive governance and the rule of law. The joint declaration also reiterates commitments to initiatives that tackle challenges such as terrorism, transnational organised crime, misinformation and disinformation, cybersecurity and hybrid threats. The joint declaration recalls the commitment of both the European Union and the African Union to deepening co-operation and dialogue on migration and mobility in a comprehensive, integrated and balanced manner, and in full respect of international law and human rights.
On the margins of the summit, I met with the President of Sierra Leone, Julius Maada Bio. We reflected on the close partnership between Ireland and Sierra Leone. Ireland is a key development partner for Sierra Leone, working on four main areas, namely, food security, education, governance and human rights, and gender equality. Our close relationship was further underscored by the recent appointment of Sierra Leone’s first resident ambassador to Ireland. Ireland will continue to be an advocate for Africa within the European Union. As an important institution for the promotion of peace, stability and development in Africa, we strongly support the strengthening of the partnership between the EU and the African Union. In that respect, the EU-African Union summit was a very important milestone in this partnership.
First, I wish to bring up the issue we are again dealing with, that of an incredibly turbulent, chaotic and conflict-ridden world. The Taoiseach spoke about the huge issues in Sudan. Part of Sudan's issue is that outside players are supplying weapons and absolute heartache, death and slaughter on a huge scale. What we need to see throughout the world is a fairer system. We are dealing with the issues of trade energy but I also refer to the debt that holds Africa back, as well as the necessity of multilateralism. Unfortunately, the might-is-right ethos seems to be causing damage. We obviously have the issue in relation to climate change but it is about how we introduce this fairer system. While we know it is all about trade, there is also the proper use of overseas aid. We have seen USAID being pulled back, while it was not necessarily always-----
I call Deputy Duncan Smith.
-----coming from an absolutely benign point of view.
Also, regarding climate change and what I said earlier, the problem in Dundalk is that our wastewater system is not up to scratch.
I call Deputy Duncan Smith.
It will be 2033 before there are upgrades and that is impacting and causing flooding today.
In this time of global uncertainty, it is important we diversify and build up relationships with other countries. The Taoiseach's attendance at the EU-African Union summit is one instance of this, as was his visit to Canada to meet Prime Minister Carney. A lot has been made of Prime Minister Carney's speech at Davos last week. While building up relationships is important, it cannot come at the expense of our values. The current CETA trade deal with Canada does so. I am specifically talking about the investor courts aspect of it. The Arbitration (Amendment) Bill will be brought before us in the next couple of months. Canada has removed the investor courts from its renegotiated North American Free Trade Agreement, NAFTA. Will the Taoiseach please divert course in terms of Ireland and lobby within the EU to have the investor courts removed from this CETA trade deal? Perhaps the spirit of Carney's speech might be used to negotiate with him in that regard.
I thank the Taoiseach for his report on the EU-African Union summit. I raise again the issue in Sudan and the crisis that continues there. Thousands have been killed and 800,000 people face starvation. Of the 17 million school-age children in Sudan, 13 million are not attending school. That is absolutely crazy when we think about it. Hospitals and schools are being incinerated. Now is the time for the African Union to step up and play its leadership role in the region with the support of multilateral actors. This is not only to say that it lets itself be held by vested interests but to say that it has an interest in the stability and security of the continent itself, that it supports peace and that it will call on the Sudanese authorities to map out a very clear timeline with firm dates for a full transition to democracy. This crisis is happening on our doorsteps. It is estimated that the famine that will ensue in Sudan will outcount what happened in Ethiopia in the 1980s. We cannot stand by any longer. The EU, as a senior multilateral partner, is now required to lead globally and put that pressure on the African Union.
I, too, wish to raise the issue of Sudan and other conflicts in Africa, such as in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Somalia and the Sahel.
Ireland has a proud history of peacekeeping in Africa. Has there been any discussion or consideration about UN peacekeeping troops being deployed to Sudan in the future? Would Ireland consider such a request?
The European Court of Justice nullified a trade agreement between the EU and Western Sahara. The African Union recognises Western Sahara as a place that is sovereign and should have self-determination but it is occupied by Morocco. The European Commission essentially refuses to accept international law and respect the right of self-determination of the Western Saharan people because it is engaged, with Morocco, in plundering the rare earth minerals, such as cobalt, and the fish resources of the occupied people of Western Sahara. They are now trying to get around the European Court of Justice's ruling on this, which was in favour of the occupied Western Sahrawis, by talking about autonomy. This has nothing to do with what international law states, which the Taoiseach said he supports, which is about the right to self-determination of an occupied people and, indeed, the right of an occupied people not to be occupied by Morocco or for the European Union to plunder their resources with the Moroccan regime.
Ryanair has also started to fly into Dakhla in occupied Western Sahara, despite the protests of the representatives of the Western Sahrawi people and the anger of the people who are occupied. Will the Taoiseach reaffirm his support, when the right to self-determination of the people of Western Sahara is being undermined by the European Union? Will the Taoiseach condemn what the European Commission is doing and indicate his support for the right to self-determination of the Western Sahrawi people, for an end to their occupation and an end to Ryanair flights into occupied territory?
The EU-African Union summit discussed the European Union's international digital strategy, which includes AI and online platforms. As the host country for so many big tech corporations, does the Taoiseach accept that Ireland has a unique responsibility to hold them to account? It is clear that is not happening. It is clear from the appearance of the Minister of State with responsibility for AI at our committee today that the main approach of the Government appears to be to hide behind the European Union and suggest the European Commission should act in order to shrink from taking action itself and just put it on the long finger.
It also seems the Government approach has been to take the word of unscrupulous big tech bosses like Elon Musk. There was a Government press release after the Minister of State, Deputy Niamh Smyth, met with X saying that "Grok, as integrated on the X platform, has been disabled from removing or reducing clothing on individuals worldwide." That was not true. I asked the Minister of State whether the Department had checked that out and whether it was true. It had not. In the course of the meeting, I was able to get someone in my office to use a VPN to pretend they were in Paris and, with my consent, create an image which undressed me. They said to the Minister of State not to worry and that this had been turned off worldwide when it has not been turned off worldwide and anyone with a modicum of tech knowledge will know how to get around this and continue to produce abusive materials. What will the Government do about it?
I think Deputy Ó Murchú was first into the breach, is that right?
We are in a very turbulent situation. The Deputy referenced Sudan, trade, energy and debt. He is correct on the debt issue. It is a great pity the USA has pulled back significantly. I hope that will be reviewed because it is a significant loss to the world and the developing world, in particular. The Deputy again skilfully brought the EU-African summit back to Dundalk's wastewater treatment plant, which is not quite encompassed by the question but I will talk to the Minister and let him know the Deputy has been raising the issue.
On Deputy Smith's point about Canada and Mark Carney, I met with Prime Minister Carney, when I was at the high-level week at the United Nations in New York, which all taoisigh go to on an annual basis. I took the opportunity to fly to Canada for an overnight to meet him the following morning. He wants CETA signed and ratified. We both discussed the benefits of CETA. I do not understand why Deputy Smith cannot endorse it.
It is just the investor courts.
Every trade agreement will have a mediation process and mechanism. Every trade agreement must have a mechanism process. The European courts dealt with that and clarified that significantly some time ago. The bottom line is the enormity of growth in trade speaks for itself, which benefits people in this country. It benefits jobs, it benefits small companies and it benefits big companies. The benefits are there. I really think the ideological straitjackets people have tied themselves into are very difficult to comprehend. Trade is our lifeblood as a small nation. The Canada-Europe trade deal has been effective in growing trade between our two countries - both ways, I add - and equally for our SMEs. We will press ahead with the arbitration Act and get that passed, which enables us to ratify that deal. That is important.
Deputy Moynihan raised the issue of Sudan as did Deputy Ó Cearúil. Deputy Moynihan went to great lengths to point out the enormity of the atrocities that have been carried out and the enormity of the impact of this war on so many millions of people. In many ways, it is the forgotten war. It does not get discussed in this House to the same degree as others. The Deputy is correct that people talk about external actors. The joint declaration of the African-EU summit condemned the atrocities committed in El Fasher by the Rapid Support Forces. It called for an immediate cessation of hostilities, unhindered humanitarian access throughout the country and reaffirmed the EU and AU support for a political process towards a unified and civilian transition, led by the African Union and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development.
Ireland has consistently said civil society actors need to be brought into the process, like we experienced in Northern Ireland. That is very important in any mediation efforts. We need a peaceful civilian transition process. There are ongoing negotiations to secure a three-month humanitarian truce. That will require significant and sustained political will from the United States, which is endeavouring to get peace there, along with Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates - the so-called "Quad" - and with the support of the European Union and African Union, and to bring the parties to the negotiating tables.
Over three years of conflict has brought the worst humanitarian crisis globally. It is the worst. The Deputy said 30 million were not attending school. That is quite shocking - 30 million children are not attending school. The savagery and destruction of civilians is absolutely shocking. We have made our contributions. Women and girls are particularly at grave risk of sexual and gender-based violence. We try to support programmes to protect women and girls. Last year, we provided about €14.3 million to support people most in need in Sudan and those displaced by the crisis in neighbouring countries. We will increase our funding this year. I accept the sincerity of Deputy Moynihan in highlighting this.
In terms of the Sahel, it was included in the joint declaration. Sometimes I would like the African Union to be more energetic with its interventions. From my perspective, and in respect of the savagery that is taking place, getting this resolved needs far more urgency. I understand and fully respect that it is the domain of the African Union but this is an appalling, shocking situation. A total of 22 million people across the Sahel need humanitarian assistance. There have been a number of coups d'état. The Russians have been involved. The Wagner Group has been involved. All sorts of deals have been done with rare earth mining and so on in exchange for security guarantees for the elites who have executed the coups d'état. That means that half of the Sahelian population - all of those countries - are now living in poverty and below the poverty line.
The situation gets worse and migration increases as a result of that. The fundamentalists and ISIS then gain traction in the rural parts of the Sahel as a result of all of this. There has been a terrible deterioration over the past number of years. We contributed about €43.8 million between 2021 and 2024 to that region. We have maintained our development and humanitarian funding to the region as well.
We opened our newest embassy in sub-Saharan Africa and Senegal in January of 2023, anxious to develop our presence in francophone West Africa. It is located in Dakar and supports international development, security and peace in the region, in particular in the Sahel. We are increasing our presence in that part of the world.
We want a just and lasting peace in Somalia, and, again, we acknowledge the efforts of the federal government there to strengthen its institutions and implement legislative reforms. The European Union has been a reliable partner for Somalia for decades. The EU has made significant contributions, mobilised through the African Peace Facility and the European Peace Facility, to the African Union. We are open to participation, but, again, that will happen very much by invitation. It will be a long time before the Security Council gets around to doing that. We have not been invited to date, but these are issues we keep under review.
Deputy Boyd Barrett referred to Western Sahara. The ECJ judgment is maybe not as straightforward as the Deputy suggested. It is some time since I read the key aspects of the judgment and the legal opinion relating to it. However, we need a peace agreement there. We need mediation and a resolution in terms of Western Sahara and Morocco.
On Deputy Murphy's point regarding digital strategy and unique responsibility, we have the same responsibility as everyone in Europe. The Deputy is wrong to say that we are hiding behind the European Commission. The Digital Markets Act is very clear that very large platforms with over 45 million users per week fall under the remit of the European Commission in the context of enforcement of the law and standards. The European Commission has announced that it is beginning an investigation into Grok and X, which is significant. Meanwhile, An Garda Síochána is pursuing issues relating to domestic law being broken in respect of child abuse images. Coimisiún na Meán is also pursuing this. The latter is working proactively with the European Commission. It is not hiding behind the Commission.
I pay tribute to the Minister of State, Deputy Smyth, for her forthright and assertive work in respect of this issue. I met with all the relevant Ministers, including the Minister for justice, the Minister, Deputy O'Donovan, the Minister of State, Deputy Smyth, the Attorney General and others in order to take stock of our existing laws. If our laws need strengthening, the Minister for justice and Attorney General will come back to the Government on that, although the view is that the legislation we have in place, namely the 1998 Act, in terms of child abuse and child protection, and the 2020 Act, are actually sufficient. There is a lot in them bar the one issue around the generation of images. Sharing is both outlawed and illegal. The generation of images per se is not. There are complications around that, but the Minister and the Attorney General will come back to us in respect of that issue.
Because the time has elapsed, we will not have time to deal with Questions Nos. 24 to 46, inclusive. I propose that we move on to the next item of business.