Dr. Peter Rigney:

Deputy Kyne referred to my use of the phrase "fig leaf". I explained it by saying that the grafting on of these indicators at the end of a process might not have happened had the Front National not done so well in an election. Only history will judge the Barroso Commission. I imagine that there are previous commissioners from both sides of the Strasbourg aisle who would have done a better job trying to bring the people of Europe with them in that difficult situation.

With regard to the existing indicators, I would prefer if they had the status of other indicators, but then they probably would not have got them through the Council. The chosen indicators seem to be a broad net. There cannot be too many or too few. Let us see what they produce and what the country-specific recommendations are.

I wish to make two points about the demographics of aging. First, we had a thing called the National Pensions Reserve Fund once upon a time which specifically dealt with the issue but it has, to quote the Bible, gone the way of all flesh, or the majority of it. Second, despite the falling birth rate we are still in a better position than most countries in Europe, in terms of our demographic structure, to be innovative in dealing with the matter.