Divided views on timetable for Occupied Territories Bill
The first is the speed with which it's going to be enacted.
Senator Frances Black argues there can't be anymore delays, given "genocide is happening and children are starving".
However, Tánaiste Simon Harris says the bill will have to be scrutinised by the Oireachtas Foreign Affairs Committee before the Dáil gets to vote on the legislatoin.
That means it's highly unlikely the OTB will be passed before the Dáil summer recess on 17 July.
The other issue is whether the legislation covers goods being produced in the Palestinian Occupied Territories, or services as well.
Senator Frances Black argues there needs to be a "full ban" on both.
But the Tánaiste believes that the legal route to banning trade in services was "not clear".
Both politicians said today's meeting had been productive, but the mood music may not always be harmonious in the future.
Tánaiste Harris was keen to point out today that the Occupied Territories Bill isn't his only focus when it comes to Gaza.
He said his aim is to "build a coalition" of countries, given Israel's plan to re-enter Gaza constitutes what he termed "a war crime".
The aim will be to re-open the EU-Israel Association Agreement, given that it has human rights elements at its core which, Mr Harris said, "means something".
He agreed that former Taoiseach Leo Varadkar had written a letter to Brussels on the same issue, but it had been effectively ignored.
However, the Tánaiste felt that if countries such as Luxembourg and Slovenia joined in a common approach then it could be more "impactful".
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