Sir, – Almost one year ago, in November 2024, both Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael stated unequivocally in general election debates that they supported passing the Occupied Territories Bill and included it in their general election manifestos.
This promise was repeated on doorsteps right across the country and was reflected in their new programme for government.
A year later, there is still no sign of actual legislation before Dáil Éireann and no clear information from Government on a timeline for its introduction.
The only progress so far has been a referral of the issue to the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, which spent weeks in July hearing from legal specialists and expert witnesses, and concluded unanimously that the Bill should be progressed and should include a ban on all trade, including both goods and services, with Israel’s illegal settlements in Palestine.
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Since then? Nothing.
Where is the urgency from Government? Tánaiste Simon Harris has repeatedly stated that despite a fragile ceasefire in Gaza, in which bombs continue to fall and people continue to be killed, Ireland will not row back on its commitments.
The lack of clear progress on a modest measure that seeks to merely deliver on the bare minimum obligations demanded by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) is a worrying signal.
In the time it took for the Dáil to go on its summer recess, several other EU countries moved ahead and acted. For example, Spain introduced equivalent legislation in September and passed it into law a month later. This shows what is possible with political will.
As organisations which have worked in solidarity with Palestine for many years, including development and humanitarian organisations which see the devastating reality every day in Gaza and the West Bank, we believe the worst thing that Ireland could do now would be to renege on our commitments.
This is the tragic, predictable cycle we have witnessed so often over decades. Countries pay attention as the death toll mounts but they lose resolve when the issue recedes from public view.
Palestinians are condemned to the same failed status quo without the real, tangible action needed to address the underlying root causes and deliver a just and lasting peace.
The situation in Palestine has not been resolved in the past month. In Gaza, crippling restrictions on aid are still in place, entire communities remain displaced, people struggle to access adequate food and shelter, and thousands of bodies remain under rubble. In the West Bank, 2025 has seen record levels of home demolitions, settler attacks and illegal settlement construction.
The issue is disappearing from TV screens but the reality on the ground is catastrophic.
Ireland has recognised the state of Palestine. Both the Taoiseach and Tánaiste have acknowledged Israel’s actions in Gaza as a genocide and have pledged to comply with the ruling of the ICJ.
The court was unequivocal that this must include an end to all trade, in both goods and services, and investment in the illegal settlements.
If the Government means what it says it must now fulfil its promises and pass the Occupied Territories Bill without further delay. – Yours, etc.
ÉAMONN MEEHAN,
Chairperson,
Sadaka – the Ireland
Palestine Alliance,
DR DAVID LANDY,
Chairperson, Academics
for Palestine,
KAROL BALFE, CEO,
Action Aid Ireland.
KATIE MARTIN,
Coordinator,
AfrI-Action from Ireland,
STEPHEN BOWEN,
Executive Director, Amnesty International Ireland
MAEVE MCLAUGHLIN,
Director, Bloody Sunday Trust,
CONOR O’NEILL,
Head of Policy,
Christian Aid Ireland
Solidarity campaign,
(and 24 other members of the campaign to pass the Occupied Territories Bill).
Sir, – Speaking at the Labour Party conference Labour leader Ivana Bacik called on the Government to enact the Occupied Territories Bill in full by Christmas (“Ivana Bacik speech heralds major step change for Labour,” November 17th).
Ms Bacik’s is just the latest voice to express disquiet at the manner in which the Occupied Territories Bill seems to have disappeared silently as a priority item from the Government’s legislative agenda.
This week, a broad coalition of Opposition parties and Independents are bringing a joint motion before the Dáil calling on the Government to urgently enact the Bill and, crucially, to ensure that trade in services is included. It will be instructive to see how Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael react.
While the Government here continues to obfuscate and slow down the progression of the Occupied Territories Bill, other EU states have moved forward. Both Spain and Slovenia, for example, have announced definite plans to prohibit trade with the illegal Israeli settlements.
The Taoiseach needs to explain the profoundly disappointing absence of headway here. Settler violence and illegal settlement construction on Palestinian land have increased. Is our Government serious about purposeful sanctions or not? – Yours, etc,
FINTAN LANE,
Lucan,
Co Dublin.
World Cup dreams
Sir, – Troy Parrott’s interview after the final whistle on Sunday was one of the best, if not the best, sporting highlight this 71 year-old codger has ever witnessed.
It brought a tear to my eye.
When he uttered the noble and honest words “I love where I come from” it triggered so many positive thoughts about soccer in my head.
This beautiful game is playable by every boy and girl no matter where you come from.
The passion that it brings to kids and adults is phenomenal. It’s played on streets, in parks, in school yards, small gardens in the inner cities, everywhere.
It’s classless. I love the game. I get the point that cynical fouls and playacting happen in games but unlike some other sports, you don’t have to attend certain schools to get on a soccer team.
Finally, a chara, I love the multicultural aspect of our team. That’s so important in this country, particularly in the present social climate. Míle buíochas. – Yours, etc,
PAT BURKE WALSH,
Gorey,
Co Wexford.
Sir, – If the Irish football fan base had indeed been waiting, hoping, praying for a team to follow (“Five things we learned from Ireland’s World Cup qualification campaign,” November 17th), they didn’t have far to look given the Irish women’s team’s successes and growth in recent years.
It is the Irish men’s football fan base that has been waiting. Those who don’t see men as the default have had something to get behind long before this week in men’s international football.
LOUISE LAWLESS,
Dundrum,
Dublin 16.
Name changer
Sir, – Caomhán Mac Con Iomaire is right to be annoyed at the unnecessary and meaningless attempts to anglicise his name.
I can remember being annoyed and puzzled in primary school when a teacher insisted on referring to me as Seán Ó Dúill which wasn’t, and isn’t, my name. – Yours, etc,
JOHN DOYLE,
Enniskeane
Co Cork.
Raising cancer awareness
Sir, – As we mark World Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Day on November 20th, the founders of Pancreatic Cancer Ireland, together with some of the country’s foremost oncologists and cancer treatment specialists, are seeking urgent action if Ireland is to stand any chance of improving outcomes for the more than 600 people diagnosed with pancreatic cancer each year.
Pancreatic cancer kills five in every six people diagnosed. While outcomes for most cancers are improving, this is not the case for pancreatic cancer, which is predicted to become the second leading cause of cancer death by 2030.
The National Cancer Strategy (2017-2026) highlights the need for rapid referral pathways and rapid diagnostic clinics. These initiatives have proven transformative, enabling earlier diagnosis and significantly improving outcomes for many cancer patients. However pancreatic cancer patients are being left behind and as a country, we are failing them.
We urgently need at least one rapid access diagnostic pancreatic cancer clinic to ensure patients receive specialist assessment and care within two weeks, ending inordinately long waits and unacceptable inequalities that can cost lives.
There is also a critical need to raise greater awareness for pancreatic cancer. The main symptoms and early signs are largely underestimated and often go undetected.
Despite the excellent work being carried out in our hospitals and by other stakeholders, we need greater support from government in tackling this disease and supporting pancreatic cancer patients, and their families.
When the founders of Pancreatic Cancer Ireland encountered pancreatic cancer in our own lives, we felt powerless with so little information available to us.
This needs to change. Knowledge and awareness are powerful advocates of better health and better outcomes. – Yours, etc.
RACHEL DUQUESNOIS,
Chairperson and co-founder,
Pancreatic Cancer Ireland,
PAMELA DEASY, pancreatic
cancer survivor and co-founder,
Pancreatic Cancer Ireland,
NIALL ROCHFORD, co-founder, Pancreatic Cancer Ireland,
Prof AISLING BARRY,
Radiation Oncologist and Chair of Radiation Oncology, UCC; Consultant surgeon, National Surgical Centre for Pancreatic Cancer,
St Vincent’s University Hospital,
Prof GRÁINNE O’KANE,
Consultant medical oncologist,
St Vincent’s University Hospital,
Dublin.
Operation some flow
Sir, – There was a time when Dubliners would look forward to the annual Operation Free Flow – gardaí on junctions, whistles blowing, and a sporting chance of getting across the city before fossilisation set in. Traffic moved; buses crept; cyclists and pedestrians alike survived.
Today, we have its modern successor: Operation No Flow, courtesy of Dublin City Council – a bold urban experiment where having standing stationary traffic is mandatory.
The roads now resemble an endurance event, complete with cones, ramps, potholes, bollards, and traffic lights that appear to be arguing among themselves.
One wonders what happened. Did someone lose the traffic plan, or has gridlock officially been reclassified as Dublin’s newest immersive cultural attraction – “Still Life With Cars”?
Might I humbly suggest a middle ground – Operation Some Flow – where getting from A to B doesn’t require a packed lunch and the mental resilience of a Himalayan sherpa. – Yours, etc.
JONATHAN WORMALD,
Sutton,
Dublin 13.
Russia and threats to peace
Sir, – Lara Marlowe’s exposition of Prof Carlo Masala’s chilling book, If Russia Wins: A Scenario, should be mandatory reading for all those who advocate a passive response to Russia’s actions in both Ukraine and Europe more generally.
Russian president Vladimir Putin has consistently demonstrated an absolute unwillingness to choose any kind of diplomatic off-ramp which has been offered to him.
Even US president Donald Trump, who once touted his fantastic relationship with Mr Putin and rolled out the red carpet for him in Alaska, has grown tired of the Russian leader’s intransigence.
There seems to be a naivety among the so-called “peace brigade” in this country regarding the threat which Russia poses. Perhaps it is deliberate.
Advocating for peace is indeed laudable, but the type of peace matters. Why is it that some on the political left seem to want to abandon Ukraine and leave Europe utterly exposed to Russia’s depredations?
Does the size and scale of the Russian military not scare them? What about the increasingly sophisticated forms of hybrid warfare which the Russians are employing?
In order to deter Vladimir Putin from further aggression, there is only really one option – turn up the heat. Sanctions are the best route to success in this regard, but it is also absolutely necessary to ramp up investment in security and defence, like Germany is doing.
We can preserve our neutrality but we cannot ignore the fact that the concept is increasingly becoming redundant.
Just as Ireland has stood up for Gaza, we must also stand up for Europe and Ukraine. – Yours, etc,
THOMAS CONWAY,
Ballina,
Co Tipperary.
Not taking a leaf
Sir, – In previous years, it was standard practice for Dublin City Council to diligently clear leaves from the footpaths every autumn. Unfortunately, this year, numerous footpaths throughout the city remain untouched, with heaps of leaves left to decay on them. This creates a significant hazard to pedestrians, particularly vulnerable pedestrians.
Dublin City Council often asserts its commitment to looking after the wellbeing of its most vulnerable citizens. However, they seem to disregard the very real danger posed by the slippery leaves cluttering our walkways.
I have no doubt that many elderly and frail individuals have suffered slips and falls as a direct result of these hazardous conditions, leading to injuries that could easily have been avoided. I recently slipped on leaves, and my 80-year-old back is still recovering.
Shame on the management of Dublin City Council, as well as on the councillors who choose not to raise their voices in the council chamber. Our community deserves far better attention and care to ensure pedestrian safety. – Yours, etc,
PHILIP O’NEILL,
Ranelagh,
Dublin 6.
Some bottle
Sir, – Jim Ryan tells us that he feels that spending over ¤30 on a bottle of wine is “a waste of money” (Letters, November 17th).
From that, one can assume that he makes a point of avoiding eating out in Irish restaurants. Decent bottles of wine in my local supermarket, costing between ¤10 and ¤15, consistently appear on the wine list of restaurants in Dublin at a cost of well over ¤40.
Can we hope that the reduction in VAT for the hospitality sector will change all that? – Yours, etc,
MARTIN McDONALD,
Dublin 12.
Buttering up
Sir, – Many years ago, I called in to a cafe in Limerick for a late-night snack and ordered hot-buttered toast. Following an unexpectedly long wait, I asked the waitress for a progress report. Having checked with the kitchen, she returned : “Well, the toast is no problem, but they’re just having a bit of difficulty with the hot butter.” – Yours, etc,
GILLIAN SMITH,
Dublin 6.
