Brussels, 13/11/2014 (Agence Europe) - The European Parliament said on Thursday 13 November that it was important to restart the stalled peace talks in Northern Ireland. Talks broke down in December 2013 due to disputes over issues such as welfare spending, flags and emblems, and parading.
With its adoption of a joint resolution (EPP, S&D, ECR, ALDE, GUE/NGL and Greens/EFA) on the peace process in Northern Ireland, Parliament “expresses concern at the fact that the implementation of the peace process has reached an impasse”. It urges all parties to the process to “work constructively towards a lasting resolution of the conflict and the full implementation of the Good Friday Agreement and subsequent agreements for a long-lasting and enduring peace”.
Parliament welcomes the initiative to convene all-party talks to overcome the current impasse, and underlines the necessity of agreement on outstanding issues in order to underpin the functioning and stability of the democratic institutions of Northern Ireland. It encourages all parties to engage in these talks “positively with a view to resolving all outstanding issues”.
MEPs are concerned that “continued violent, criminal and anti-social activity by fringe elements is undermining the peace process”. They stress the need to combat such criminal activity by tackling existing economic challenges such as unemployment and low incomes and living standards. Parliament underlines the “urgent need” to further encourage reconciliation and improve relationships between communities and also to boost economic and social development in order to consolidate the peace process. It highlights, in this regard, support from the EU's European Regional Development Fund and, in particular, the €150 million for the PEACE Programme to tackle these priority issues in Northern Ireland and the border region of Ireland, “to the benefit of all, north and south”. It hopes that the Commission's Northern Ireland Task Force will continue to play an important supportive role in the future. And it welcomes the appointment of Senator Gary Hart by President Obama's Secretary of State John Kerry as his personal envoy. (LC)