Paul Murphy: Government Guts Occupied Territories Bill
Paul Murphy speaks in the Dáil to condemn the government's decision to remove services from Frances Black's Occupied Territories Bill. He says ministers ignored the Foreign Affairs Committee, the Dáil and international legal opinion, and argues the change is political.
What the speech asserts
Paul Murphy outlines why the debate centres on the government's decision to exclude services from the Occupied Territories Bill. He says this move contradicts the unanimous position of the Foreign Affairs Committee and the Dáil, and that the exclusion undermines the bill's original purpose.
Legal evidence cited
Murphy points to expert testimony presented to the committee and to the International Court of Justice, arguing those authorities made no distinction between goods and services. He notes that Spain implemented measures on services without legal challenge from the European Commission, challenging the government's legal rationale.
Political motives identified
Murphy accuses ministers of replacing legal judgement with political calculation. He cites leaked Attorney General advice describing the change as a political choice, and the timing of diplomatic contact from the US Ambassador and a subsequent review decision to argue that US pressure influenced the government.
Public response and next steps
Murphy says the decision is disgraceful and calls for sustained public pressure to insist the bill include both goods and services. He frames the issue as a moral question about standing against genocide and apartheid versus prioritising relations with the US administration.
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Thanks, László Ciann Comhairle. What this debate is about is the shameful decision of the Irish government to gut Francis Black's Occupied Territories Bill by excluding services. It only took up a tiny fraction of the Minister's opening statement but everybody knows that's what this debate's about. It's about your decision to ignore the unanimous position of the Foreign Affairs Committee. It's about your decision to ignore the unanimous position of this Dáil. It's about your decision to ignore the fact that Spain has implemented measures on services with no come back, no legal action from the European Commission. It's about your decision to ignore the position and the decision of the International Court of Justice which made no distinction between goods and services when they said that states must abstain from entering into economic or trade dealings with Israel concerning the Occupied Palestinian Territory. And you've been scratching around for some sort of legal justification to hang this upon. And what you've come up with is the idea that the public policy exemption only applies to goods. I don't think you believe it Minister. I don't think you have any legal authorities to base it upon because I presume you heard the evidence of expert after expert after expert, eminent lawyer after eminent lawyer in the Foreign Affairs Committee who said one after the other public policy also provides a derogation not only for the free movement of goods but also the freedom to provide services. But everybody knows it's not about law. You know it's not about law. In 2018 Minister, you said in response to the original Occupied Territories Bill, you said the first and essential reason is that we can't support it is that the essential purpose of the bill is contrary to EU law and requires the state to do something which is not in its power. You said then that legally we couldn't do goods or services. Neither. But the European law hasn't changed an iota since then. The European law in relation to trade is the same. So what has changed is politics. What has changed is that you're under pressure on this issue. It's all about politics. The Attorney General said it was about politics. The Attorney General said in the leaked advice that the decision to replace the Occupied Territories Bill is quote a political choice. What's the political choice? The political choice is not to annoy Donald Trump and the US administration too much. That's the bottom line. We know 90 minutes after the US Ambassador wrote to Neil Martin saying we have concerns about this bill, then Neil Martin said the bill is going to be reviewed rather than progressed. I think it is disgraceful. It is utterly disgraceful to prioritise relations with Donald Trump, with US imperialism over standing up against genocide and standing up against apartheid. And public pressure is going to come to bear and come to bear and come to bear over the coming weeks to insist that we at the very least have a bill that includes goods and services.
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