Taoiseach Addresses Seanad On The Progress Made In The North

Outlining the enormous progress that has been made since the signing of the Good Friday Agreement over 11 years ago, he said: "The bedrock of our peace and our common future on this island is the Good Friday Agreement. It is the founding document of a new era - an era of peace, of mutual respect and of co-operation."

He set out his unequivocal support for the institutions and opposition to tiny groups who use violence to try to undermine them: "The democratic institutions and the peace that we all worked so hard to achieve are being challenged by a tiny and unrepresentative group of people with no mandate and no support for their actions. They will not succeed."

He highlighted the active work of the North/South Ministerial Council, emphasizing "very good progress on major roads and telecommunications projects, on health, on education, on tourism, on trade and innovation and on regional co-operation in the North West and along the border."

He also said that both North and South needed to face the economic crisis together and that "the growing dynamic of the all-island economy can make a vital contribution to economic recovery."

He said that he did recognize the difficult challenges that lie ahead for Northern Ireland, telling the Senators that, "The continuing existence of sectarianism, of peace walls and of deep communal divisions in parts of the North is an affront to democracy and to a civilised society.  It must be energetically tackled and confronted by political leaders and by the wider community.  The Irish Government is more than willing to play our part.

"People from all communities, and especially those who have been marginalised in the past, need to see hope and opportunity for their children.

"At a time of economic crisis around the world, to which the North cannot be immune, we cannot allow old hatreds to fester and renew themselves."