Dominic Hannigan (Meath East, Labour) | Oireachtas source

We are glad to have the witnesses here today. Mr. Dombrovskis is correct that Ireland and Latvia share many similarities. We are two of the smaller countries in the European Union and, like Latvia, Ireland has a population of 4.5 million. The history of Ireland is not dissimilar to that of Latvia.

Mr. Dombrovskis mentioned that 10% of the population are living abroad because of the economic recession. Many of our young people, in particular, have emigrated or are in the process of emigrating. Also, many Latvians are in our country. There are many Latvians in my constituency and they work very hard. They are well liked by people here and they contribute greatly to Irish society, so they are very welcome.

Perhaps the witnesses can arrange between themselves who is best placed to answer my questions. My first concerns the euro and the hope of Latvia joining the eurozone in 2014. What do the witnesses think of the current proposals for a banking union? I refer in particular to the potential changes to the voting rights of the supervisory board and the movement from one vote per member state to votes based on population. What is the position of Latvia on that point? What do the witnesses think of the financial transactions tax? Do they expect to see it come into play in Latvia in the near future?

Youth employment is an issue for Ireland during the Presidency. We are seeking to make progress on the youth guarantee and the witnesses are probably aware that proposals will be made in December. Do the witnesses have thoughts on how a youth guarantee will work in Latvia? What is it considering in this regard? I will provide more information on our Presidency later.