Mr. Joe Hackett:

I will try to cover as many of the comments and questions as possible. Ms O'Donoghue has covered some of Deputy Haughey's questions on the rule of law and I fully agree with that. The simple rule of thumb is that the EU positions itself as a world leader for the promotion of the rule of law, democracy and multilateralism abroad, outside the Union's borders. That objective is inevitably undermined unless we uphold those values within the European Union itself. That is why we have adopted the position as set out by the Tánaiste.

Deputy Haughey mentioned French leadership and ambitious programmes. The EU and Ireland need an ambitious France. We need a President of France who has a clear vision for Europe. As the Taoiseach said when he visited Paris recently, we agree with many of President Macron's ambitions, including on climate, agriculture and the promotion of democracy and the rule of law. Of course, there are things on which we have a different approach. Tomorrow the Dáil will debate the strategic agenda of the EU for the next five years. France will come to the European Council with its vision for the strategic agenda and Ireland will do likewise. Member states will then agree a way forward. That is the way we do business and it is something that should be welcomed.

Deputy Durkan raised a number of issues, the first of which was taxation. I fully agree with the views he set out. I agree with his reasoning and that our long-standing position on corporate tax in particular has been good for this country. This has been recognised by parties across the Oireachtas and by our people. Ireland's position on corporate taxation is well known among member states and in Brussels. It is recognised that it is one of our strong interests. Every member state has a strong interest in different issues and they advocate those as strongly as possible. Successive Governments have done so and we continue to do so in Brussels. It is an area that is covered by unanimity but it is also an area on which we are not alone. In fact, it is a good example of how new alliances have worked well. The so-called Hanseatic League of Nordic and Baltic countries and the Netherlands has worked quite well among finance ministers. There was important political support for the position taken by our Minister for Finance at a recent Council on digital taxation, for example. That is an example of alliances working well. That said, Deputy Durkan is correct that we must continue to be vigilant in this area.

I fully agree with the points made regarding the Single Market, which is arguably the greatest economic achievement of the European Union. However, it is not complete. Ireland is one of the member states that continuously advocates for the completion of the Single Market. That is why we have taken a leading role on services. As Deputy Durkan said, because of our geographic position, we face mobility challenges but we have reflected those and formed alliances to try to tackle some of them. I strongly agree with the Deputy on the issue of the EU being, at its core, a peace project and a place of welcome for those who are fleeing persecution or deprivation. We must always remind people, particularly younger generations, that the EU is, at its core, a peace project and I welcome the fact that the Deputy highlighted that point. I will not stray into the migration issue other than to say that a large number of members of the Defence Forces have spent recent years as part of Operation Sophia. The particular remit of our contingent was search and rescue of migrants in the Mediterranean Sea and Ireland can be proud of the role it has played.

One of the questions asked was whether there were areas to which we were not attentive in the past. Collectively, we need to be more aware of, and engaged on, issues of importance to other member states. It is understandable that every member state is focused on the areas of most importance to it. However, I am often struck in Brussels by issues on which other member states are very focused such as the eastern partnership agenda and energy. Inevitably, Ireland has a different perspective on such issues based on our geographic position but it is important that we know the position of other member states and that we understand why these issues are important. The reform of something called the posted workers directive and laws governing the haulage sector are in the top three issues for countries such as Bulgaria and Romania because they are politically sensitive for them. We just need to know that so that when we go to those countries, we can engage with them on their position. It is not a criticism that we have not been able to do that up to now. It is just something of which we need to be aware.

I agree with the points made about the narrative we need to sell about Ireland. Across member states and in Brussels, more needs to heard about the importance of our indigenous SME sector and about the innovations taking place in the farming and agriculture sectors. More needs to be said about the smart and creative things that rural communities are doing. We can be a role model for other member states in that regard. It is not always just about taxation, foreign direct investment and multinationals. Our economic story is much more rich and complex than that.

Ms O'Donoghue touched on some of the more practical things that the Oireachtas can do, as referred to by Senator Richmond. The more that one can meet and connect with people, the better. It is a simple rule of thumb and we are good at that in Ireland; Irish people are good at it. I know that committee members have busy schedules but the more they can travel to member states and meet their counterparts, the better.

There is a role for us in making sure that all of the committees, wherever they go, focus on their area and also make sure that we can add value to that by having shared messages on priorities for Ireland and for the member states that members visit. Being more systematic and joined up in our engagement as a country is something that we are getting better at but we have to continue with that.

Senators Leyden and Richmond touched on our strategic engagement and placements and those questions are more appropriate for the Department so Ms O'Donoghue will take them.