Part of the debate – in the House of Commons am 12:00 am ar 13 Rhagfyr 1973.
I am sorry to detain the House, because I know there are some hon. Members who feel that the debate has gone on long enough. I hope they realise the seriousness of this situation and of the argument. We are talking about the reality of Northern Ireland, not the philosophy. We are dealing with the lives of people. I am not talking about cups of tea. I was sitting in an unholy alliance elsewhere earlier today having cups of tea. I am talking about what happened here this afternoon and what was said by the hon. Member for Antrim, North, the hon. Member for Mid-Ulster and the hon. Member for Fermanagh and South Tyrone. They should not be so sensitive.
It is not right to impugn the motives of my hon. Friend the Member for Belfast, West and Mr. Faulkner. If people remain in this House long enough they will see some strange alliances come and go. I accept what the hon. Lady has said. I have found myself with the most odd people on occasions. I am glad that the right hon. Member for Wolverhampton, South-West (Mr. Powell) is in his place because I think that he thinks the same thing. We have found ourselves in the same Lobby in the past because we came together on an idea which we believed, from our standpoint, was politically important.
I have tried to draw together the threads of the debate—a dangerous thing to do in a debate on Irish affairs. It was important to try to do so and to say that we welcome the new Executive. We give the orders a fair wind and wait to see their outcome. We welcome the proposals for a Council of Ireland. My hon. Friend the Member for Leeds, South (Mr. Merlyn Rees) outlined many points which the Minister who is to reply will no doubt bear in mind. I have listened to the forcible arguments expressed against the proposals for the Executive and the Council of Ireland. What I have not heard is what we could put in their place which could bridge the two communities in Northern Ireland. Until we hear this the Opposition will continue to support these current policies.