Despite the fragmentation of the island of Ireland and the separation of the south of Ireland from the rest of the United Kingdom, it is important to understand the influeces that all of our peoples have made to this country. Andrew spoke in a Westminster Hall debate yesterday on the influence of Irish culture and the Irish people on the remainder of the United Kigndom, and Andrew was proud to champion these impacts, especially those that can be felt in Romford. So, ahead of St. Patrick's Day on Sunday, God Bless Eire!
I thank my right hon. Friend for her kind remarks. I was proud to be the co-chair of the British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly from 2016 to 2022. I commend her work, and the work of BIPA over so many years in promoting relations between not just Britain and Ireland, but the devolved legislatures of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, and the Crown dependencies of the Isle of Man, Jersey and Guernsey. Sunday is an important day for me because it is my birthday on St Patrick’s Day. My great- grandparents were Dempseys and O’Learys.
If my right. hon Friend will indulge me for a moment, I would like to pay tribute to the schools and churches in my constituency—St Mary’s Roman Catholic Church and St Mary’s Roman Catholic Primary School in Hornchurch, St Peter’s Catholic School and St Edward’s Roman Catholic Church in Romford, St Patrick’s Catholic Primary School in Collier Row and Corpus Christi. I also pay tribute to the Iona club, which is somewhere people of Irish ancestry can go to socialise and meet people in the local community. I am proud of my Irish links and the Irish connections within Romford. I look forward to continuing to work with my right hon. Friend and all Members of the House to ensure that we promote strong British-Irish relations going forward.
Andrew Rosindell M.P., Member of Parliament for Romford