Vincent P Martin (Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Commissioner for giving freely of his time this morning. It is much appreciated. I detect the collective solidarity of the EU. All present know Mr. Breton is not the Commissioner on behalf of France or Ireland but, rather, the Commissioner on behalf of the EU. We thank him for his valiant efforts to date.

I am appealing to Mr. Breton to be a Commissioner for countries beyond the EU. Will he assure us he is aware the world is divided into haves and have-nots, them and us, and those living in Third World countries feel like fifth-class citizens and like they are at the back of the queue? Will the Commissioner be a leading voice and use his pivotal and influential role to do his utmost in the name of global solidarity? It is necessary to extend the approach from EU solidarity to world solidarity. Is he aware of the divisive fears of many that they will be left behind? Is he acutely aware of that? Does he have a separate task force or division set up to tackle that issue? I know he is working very hard in his influential position to help the less well-off, the poor, the disadvantaged and those who have no voice. Ireland has a voice. The Commissioner has given the committee a very informative presentation on how we are doing in Ireland but our small nation has a brilliant reputation for standing up for the less well-off. Through the years, we have displayed generosity that far exceeds our population size.

My second question relates to the digital age. I know Deputy Howlin and others have touched on this issue. The Commissioner is aware of the vile abuse of ethnic minorities and the disgusting tirade of homophobic abuse on social media. It is so important that connectivity is not abused. What is the greatest facility of this generation has also proven to be one of the most divisive, unsupervised and cowardly ways faceless people can abuse others, sometimes to such an extent that the victims take their own lives. I am convinced this issue will someday be resolved, but I have seen no progress whatsoever in tackling the wanton abuse and aggression on social media, mostly targeted at vulnerable people. When will there be a tangible breakthrough rather than just tinkering at the edges? Will that happen during Mr. Breton's term as Commissioner? I know it is a global issue and it is a big ask, but it is a very important thing to ask. Will he play his role in putting manners on those on social media, for once and for all, as well as the profit-making people who are allowed to do what they want? We cannot trust them and the attempts to tackle them have, to date, clearly failed. When will the EU come together with its partners throughout the world to state that enough is enough? When can we expect the cowardly and faceless persons who propagate this disgusting and vile abuse to be stopped?

My third point-----