![\"\"](\"http:\/\/irishexaminerusa.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/2.54360865.jpg\")
Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney has said his opposition to the Occupied Territories Bill is not political, but based on clear advice from the former attorney general.<\/p>\nForeign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney has said his opposition to the Occupied Territories Bill is not political, but based on clear advice from the former attorney general.<\/p>\n
The Bill, which would ban imports from illegal Israeli settlements in Palestinian territories, has been opposed by Mr Coveney and Fine Gael on the basis that it would contravene EU law.<\/p>\n
The issue of the bill was a sticking point in government formation talks in recent weeks, and was removed from the program for government at the behest of Fine Gael.<\/p>\n
Speaking in the D\u00e1il on Thursday, Mr Coveney said his opposition to the bill is informed by legal advice.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know many times I have to say it but people don\u2019t want to seem to hear it. The reason why I have opposed as a Minister, the introduction of the Occupied Territories Bill is because I have very clear legal advice from the previous attorney general which I believe to be very credible and that is that we can\u2019t do it, we can\u2019t enforce it and we can\u2019t implement it\u201d, he said.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s as if to say the legal advice from the AG is not valid because we have some other legal advice from somebody else, somewhere and it says otherwise, \u201d he said.<\/p>\n
He continued: \u201cAs a Government Minister, I have to respect and act upon the legal advice the State\u2019s legal advice has available to it. It is the State\u2019s legal advice.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo this is not some kind of strategic opposition by me to a piece of legislation. It is a legal position. I can understand the frustration behind the Occupied Territories Bill, but on many occasions I have explained why we can\u2019t do it and people don\u2019t want to accept that for political reasons.\u201d<\/p>\n