International Developments: Statements
Dail Éireann — 2026-01-21
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Cathy Bennett (SF), Cavan-Monaghan

What message is the Government sending to EU partners on our neutrality when, to remove the provision, it is citing that protocol as informing it? If the Government wishes to undo the solemn commitment it made to the Irish people during the second Lisbon referendum, it should place its proposals before the people through a referendum. It would have the opportunity to cite others as having abandoned neutrality.
There are those who bang the drums for war, act as mouthpieces for the armaments industry and decry Ireland as a defence freeloader. They are the same parties that have overseen what has happened to our Defence Forces and that now, through seeking to gut neutrality, are attempting to grant themselves the authority to deploy Irish soldiers abroad without UN mandate. I recall the famous banner outside Liberty Hall that stated: "We serve neither king nor kaiser but Ireland".
In the interim, I will pose this question. If the Taoiseach is so willing to cast aside his previous Government's solemn national declaration to the Irish people on the triple lock, is his Government not the last you would wish to give this power to?

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-01-21/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-31T01:00:51+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-01-21