Dr. Gavin Barrett:

-----others, to discuss the issue. I think there is a role for the Seanad and now is the time to think about it.

Deputy Durkan mentioned the issue of the conflict between national parliaments and the European Parliament. I suspect both of them have a role. It is impossible for national parliaments to have a fully European perspective. We are going to see things from our own perspective in the Oireachtas. In the European Parliament, we get a more European perspective. At the same time, the European Parliament cannot do the job on its own by reason of the fact that people identify themselves primarily in national terms and also by virtue of the falling participation rates. It may well be a shotgun marriage, but I suspect the partnership between the two will be a long-lasting one, and we will have to do the best we can to make it work.