I have a great deal of sympathy with what the hon. Gentleman says. He tempts me to stray into policy areas that are not mine, so I will pass on his comments to the shadow Foreign Secretary and ask for a response. But it was a nice try!
The hon. Gentleman will be delighted to know that, just on Tuesday, Their Royal Highnesses the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall, alongside my hon. Friend the Member for Hammersmith (Andy Slaughter), visited the Irish cultural centre in Hammersmith. I think they were even persuaded to take up the bodhran and play their part in an impromptu music session. Yesterday here in Parliament I was proud to co-host an event for parliamentarians with the Irish ambassador and CHAMP, the peace and reconciliation organisation. And of course today, on St Patrick’s day itself, we are having this debate.
The position and prominence of our community has arguably never been stronger, but we have come through tough times and the impact of the troubles was felt
acutely by the Irish community here. As my right hon. Friend the Member for Hackney North and Stoke Newington (Ms Abbott) and the hon. Member for Rutherglen and Hamilton West (Margaret Ferrier) said, many were shunned and subjected to anti-Irish racism, personally and through the press. We know about the prominent miscarriages of justice, but we also remember the treatment of the wider community as a suspect community and the impact of legislation such as the Prevention of Terrorism (Temporary Provisions) Act 1974.
I am sure the hon. Member for Belfast South (Claire Hanna) would agree that, outside Northern Ireland, no group of people have benefited more from, or been more supportive of, the peace process and good relations between the UK and Ireland than the Irish in Britain. We still face challenges, however. We know that many of our fellow Irish in Britain still suffer health inequalities, for example, with higher rates of cancers and increasing mental health conditions. I know that the Minister has a keen interest in this. The Government have a duty to address that in the same way they would for other communities.