Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome our Canadian colleagues to Ireland and wish them a very successful tour. It is particularly important that they should come at this time from the point of view of Ireland's assumption of the Presidency of EU next January and that of the questions Mr. Tilson MP raised. Those points are important and we have raised them. It is interesting that issues that concern the delegation also concern us.

The first point we must remember is that Ireland's Presidency of the European Union is very important from the point of view of Ireland and that of Europe. We believe we have a calming influence in that we are prepared to carry and face up to our responsibilities of an economic nature, fully accept all that goes with that, and, as a result, we expect to be treated as equals within the European Union. The question of smaller countries playing a lesser role does not arise. We believe we have an equally important role to play and that we all have to cease thinking in a parochial sense. We have to think as Europeans. Each of us, as elected members of national parliaments, must begin to think as Europeans and to have regard for the welfare of all the people of Europe in all the regions without exception because that will represent an inclusiveness that has been sadly lacking in the performance of some European leaders during the past year or more.

We believe that, as a small country, we have a particular role to play in the sense that we realise what needs to be done. We know, for instance, that the major European powers have accepted and taken on responsibilities that are huge in terms of a financial input, but that does not mean we are not aware of the pain they are going through. Everyone has to suffer in the current economic climate.

Mr. Tilson mentioned the Canadian boom as compared with the performance of other economies. That reminds me of the agricultural sector in this country because some people say that sector is booming but in actual fact it is not. It is in comparison with the building sector because, following the boom, the building sector is non-existent, and the same applies to that sector in many of our neighbouring countries. The reason for that is the huge emphasis that was placed on property, property prices and the high level of lending that took place. In the United States, and this occurred to a lesser extent in Canada, there was sub-prime lending and the creation of unprecedented inflation in the house property sector. Not since the 1930s has anything happened that has been as bad. When the crash came, what effectively happened here is that the two thirds of all revenue that was generated by the building sector disappeared overnight and left a considerable chasm in its wake. The strategy that has been adopted in Ireland is to try to ensure the productive sectors which target export markets - the food, pharmaceutical and chemical sectors - continue to do their best to carry the responsibility for regenerating the economy, and that is what is happening at present. Above and beyond all other European countries, we have done more than our fair share in setting out what has to be done. We have made huge sacrifices and there has been huge hurt in terms of hits to our population. A great number of people who have had their standard of living slashed are suffering. We appreciate that and there is no easy way around it.

I last point I want to make is one Mr. Tilson also mentioned. When this economic crisis first affected the smaller countries in Europe, and of course it affected the smaller countries first, there was a tendency among some economic analysts and experts of worldwide renown to suspect it would only affect smaller countries, but they were wrong.

All economic convulsions of this nature are like ripples in a pool. They spread their effect to a wider and greater extent as time goes on. We hope the calm and solid action that has been taken in Ireland will have that calming effect throughout the European Union and that it will be appreciated by our colleagues.