Government accused of 'stalling' on Occupied Territories Bill

By Cillian Sherlock, PA

A protest outside the Dáil has called for the inclusion of services in the Occupied Territories Bill, as the Government said it still needs “legal clarity” on the matter.

Demonstrators called for the urgent passing of the Occupied Territories Bill as they gathered in Molesworth Street outside an entrance to Leinster House on Wednesday evening.

The Government’s version of the Bill would limit trade with illegal Israeli settlements, but activists and opposition figures have raised concerns that it would include only trade of goods and not services.

The coalition committed to passing a ban on goods from illegal settlements, but Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign chairwoman Zoe Lawlor accused the Government of doing “nothing” to pass the Bill.

She said: “Now, as we approach the Dáil’s Christmas break, there is still silence.

“This Bill is a bare minimum action that Ireland should have taken a long time ago – it is astounding to think that it remains stalled.”

Earlier in the Dáil, People Before Profit representative Richard Boyd Barrett brought a motion calling on the Government to extend the Bill to include services and enact it as a “matter of utmost urgency” before the end of the year.

He said: “This Government speaks out of both sides of its mouth when it comes to the issue of Palestine.

“With one breath it states that it stands with the people of Palestine against the crimes that Israel inflicts on them and promises sanctions, and with the other breath it reassures its friends in the White House that it is going to do nothing at all, and the consequence is that despite promises for nearly 10 years on the Occupied Territories Bill, it still has not passed it.

“It is bad enough that, since 2018, the Government refuses to pass this Bill to impose sanctions on Israel for the illegal settlements in the West Bank, but then after two years of a genocidal massacre, the fact the Government still refuses to pass this Bill having made solemn promises in the recent general election that it would pass it, and that it is seeking to dilute it by leaving out services from the Bill, is an absolute disgrace.”

Thomas Byrne, Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs, said Ireland is “strongly opposed” to Israel’s settlement policy and activities, including in and around East Jerusalem.

He said the Government has “no policy issue” regarding the inclusion of services, but said the Bill “must be legally robust and withstand challenge”.

“Similarly, the question of implementation must be carefully considered,” he said. “The trade in services is considerably more complex than goods, and there remains considerable legal uncertainty as to whether the inclusion of services is permissible under EU law.

“We know for certain the inclusion of goods is permissible under EU law. We need legal clarity on the point on services.”

Mr Boyd Barrett said new Foreign Affairs Minister Helen McEntee’s decision not to address the Dáil on the motion was a “studied exercise in contempt designed to make sure that this debate does not get any media coverage”.

He called on the Government to do a “hell of a lot more” and be “completely boycotting the state of Israel”.

After the Dáil passed the motion without opposition from the Government, opposition TDs contended the Government had “no intention of doing it”.