mr president i am deeply disturbed by the content and tone of some of the contributions to this debate today
as direct talks between israel and the palestinian authority make a faltering start i would urge this house to be cautious in its remarks at a time of great sensitivity in the middle east
from the experience of my own constituency of northern ireland i can testify to the fragility of such talks
outside interference is often counter-productive and destabilising to progress
this is made all the more acute by the indiscriminate attack last week which killed four israeli citizens
i am sure members will join in condemning that attack and indeed in commending israel for its commitment to the talks
turning to the legislation in question we should acknowledge that the israeli government has worked with its parliament to address concerns
the bill that will progress through the knesset has seen significant changes
those changes exemplify israeli democracy in action and responsiveness to reasonable and measured criticism
the remaining measures are focused on applying the principles of openness accountability and transparency to the ngo sector
ngos across the world regularly advocate these as key principles for healthy public life in a democratic society
furthermore the requirement that foreign government support should be acknowledged in public advertising campaigns and websites is comparable with the eu funding requirement to acknowledge and promote the receipt of eu funding
i would suggest that this makes the opposition by ngos and by some within this parliament to such proposals both illogical and hypocritical
that debate represents interference in the internal affairs of a state outside the european union and on a matter which is already being addressed
many in israel will conclude that the motivation for this is born of anti-israeli sentiment when at a time of peace negotiations we should be a source of encouragement for those negotiators
