'Govt watering down Occupied Territories Bill'

THE Government has been accused of “watering down" the Occupied Territories Bill as the Taoiseach signalled it is not likely to include a ban of trade in services.

- BY CIARA O'LOUGHLIN Political Correspondent

Under proposed legislation, the bill would ban the trade of goods from Palestinian territories occupied by Israel.

However, Palestinian groups and the opposition are putting pressure on the Government to include a ban of services.

The Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade has strongly recommended progressing the bill, but said it should also be extended to include a prohibition of trade in services.

Speaking in the Dail on Tuesday, Taoiseach Micheal Martin said “it’s just not implementable" to include services in the ban.