There is currently no schedule for progressing a Bill that would restrict trade with the Occupied Palestinian Territories, as the Minister for Foreign Affairs has said she is awaiting further legal advice from the Attorney General, reports Breaking News.
The Government’s proposed legislation would prohibit trade with illegal Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, but campaigners and opposition politicians have expressed concern that it would apply only to goods and not to services, reports Breaking News.
The coalition has pledged to introduce a ban on goods originating from illegal settlements, but it has faced criticism for the slow pace of progress in bringing forward the legislation.
The Israeli Settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (Prohibition of Importation of Goods) Bill is included under “priority publication” in the Government’s spring legislative programme, reports Breaking News.
Pre-legislative scrutiny of the Bill was completed last July.
Senior Government sources have said that expanding the legislation to include services presents greater legal challenges, and that advice has been requested from Attorney General Rossa Fanning, reports Breaking News.
Foreign Affairs Minister Helen McEntee received advice from the Attorney General before Christmas but said she had additional questions arising from it.
When asked on Tuesday about a possible timeline for the Bill, Ms McEntee said: “I have to wait for the Attorney General to come back with the advice to me and we’ll work through it. But obviously it has passed through a number of different stages and we will work on it as we would any other piece of legislation”, reports Breaking News.
When pressed on whether the legislation could be completed by the summer, Ms McEntee again said she was awaiting advice specifically in relation to the inclusion of services.
Tell us your thoughts in the Facebook post and share this with your friends.
