Seán Haughey (Dublin Bay North, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank Dr. Day for her comprehensive presentation and for setting out a number of practical suggestions on how we can operate and improve matters generally from an Irish point of view. I recall her speaking at the AGM of the European Movement Ireland at the height of the Brexit crisis, which we are still in, where she expressed concerns about Ireland taking its eye off the ball regarding a number of other developments taking place in Europe, such as the future of Europe, the multi-annual financial framework, MFF, and migration. Does she still hold those concerns? She set out the agenda, but does she think that Brexit has completely taken over our public administration system and does she hold concerns about all these other development which are proceeding?

President Macron has set out his vision for Europe and we do not agree with everything that he has said. He is to be congratulated for producing a thought-provoking vision of the future of Europe. States can be divided into three categories: nation states, which do not want to make any more changes, and the view of which is that one should pull up the ladder and what we have we hold: other nation states, which believe in incremental change on a pragmatic basis in the interests of citizens, in which camp, I suggest, Ireland is; and a third category, which believes in deeper integration of the European Union. I am not sure that Irish people are fully convinced about the need for deeper integration. We have seen that in our referendums. Any case for deeper integration will have to be clearly put before them and the rationale for it explained, and there would have to be a lot of public debate. How does Dr. Day see the movement across the nation states? Is there an inexorable move towards deeper integration or will it be stalled and will there be difficulty realising President Macron's vision?

The UK leaving the EU poses a major challenge for us. For all sorts of reasons, the UK was an ally on various issues. Alliances now will have to be formed again on these issues, including farm support, tax, security and defence, and social policies. Dr. Day set out some guidelines on that. How are we doing in this regard? Are we engaged in that process? As I stated earlier, our public administration system is convulsed by the fallout from Brexit. Are we doing well in forging new alliances or does much work need to be done? I agree with the two previous speakers that the big alliance will be an alliance against populism and we know where we stand in that regard.

I have one final question. In one way, it is an innocent question. We have a view that the Irish people are popular, everybody loves us and we punch above our weight. We have good interpersonal skills, to which Dr. Day made reference in her presentations, and diplomatic skills, and our public servants are excellent in respect of diplomacy, etc., but how are we considered generally in the European Commission and across the nation states? She has much experience. We were a bold child in 2008 when our banks collapsed and we needed a bailout and we are certainly causing problems at present regarding the Border, etc. I suppose it is a light-hearted question. How are we viewed generally in the European Union?