The Dáil is unlikely to discuss legislation aimed at blocking trade with the Occupied Palestinian Territories before the autumn at earliest.
The Government signalled a timeline for the new law on Wednesday, with Tánaiste Simon Harris indicating he would seek approval from the Government to begin the process of drafting legislation in the coming weeks.
It is expected that he will do so later this month or early next month, but he will have to return to Cabinet with draft “heads” – a section-by-section summary of the new Bill – before it undergoes pre-legislative scrutiny. It would then begins its passage through the Oireachtas. The Dáil rises for its summer break in mid-July.
Having blocked the Occupied Territories Bill for years, the last government allowed it to proceed in the final months of its term after receiving updated legal advice. It rejected calls to pass the Bill before the Dáil was dissolved last November, citing legal and constitutional difficulties.
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The Government now looks set to develop its own Bill with Mr Harris expected to work out a more detailed timeline in the next fortnight. Government sources said these steps indicate there is momentum around progressing the law.
However, some in the Coalition are wary of the reaction of the US administration to the legislation. The Biden administration had expressed concerns about the Bill and the Trump administration takes an even more pro-Israel line.
Government sources say they must take account of the potential diplomatic and economic costs of moving forward with the legislation, and ultimately enforcing it. This is even more so the case with a pause to US tariffs due to expire in early July, which will ratchet up tensions over trade again.
Any perceived delay to moving forward with the Bill is likely to cause anger among those eager to see it enacted. Mr Harris met Senator Frances Black, who first introduced the Occupied Territories Bill in 2018, on Wednesday for what was described as a “positive” engagement.
Afterwards, Ms Black urged the Government to proceed with urgency, saying that she wanted the process of pre-legislative scrutiny to begin before the Dáil rises for summer.
Earlier, Mr Harris cosigned a letter with the foreign ministers of six European countries expressing “grave concern” about Israeli plans for a prolonged occupation of parts of Gaza.
Speaking in Leinster House, the Tánaiste said the Israeli plans were “sickening” and “despicable” and a “clear breach of international law and do of course constitute a war crime”.
Ireland has indicated it will lobby at a European level for greater support to re-examine human rights clauses in a trade agreement between Brussels and Israel in light of how it is conducting the war in Gaza.
Mr Harris said he is planning a fresh diplomatic push on that point, and welcomed that the Netherlands has this week backed calls for a review of the agreement. However, he also flagged legal concerns in the advice to Government about the extent of the new laws – particularly whether they could target trade in services as well as in goods.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin is also likely to discuss Middle East issues with European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen when they meet in Brussels today.
Meanwhile, RTÉ has requested a “discussion” at the European Broadcasting Union about Israel’s participation in this year’s Eurovision Song Contest.
The move follows a request by journalists at RTÉ for the station to tell the EBU that RTÉ opposes Israel’s participation.
