Ms Noelle O'Connell:

That is no problem. They were great questions from Senator Lisa Chambers and Deputy Marian Harkin. Conscious of time, I will be brief.

I absolutely agree with Senator Chambers on the practicalities. Fundamentally, it has to be framed within a context of communicating the issues in a way that resonates with people. We also need to be very clear on the parameters with regard to expectation management. Similar to the comments made by Brigid and Stephen, it is not just going to be a national dialogue here in Ireland, there also has to be that pan-European element. How we input the Irish dimension into that is going to be very important to ensure it is considered and taken into account. I have been asked to present the Irish viewpoint to the French National Assembly's EU affairs committee, and also in Lithuania. It was really interesting to share that experience. It is very important that it is pan-European and is fully reflective of the diversity of the different member states.

On a practical level in Ireland, do we look at it as a form of citizens' assembly light? It might not be an all-day event, as is the current Citizens' Assembly. We did it previously in two hours. We ensured that people were engaged, that there were ample refreshments, and that it was very accessible. On the point made about the hook, that is exactly it. I was moderating all of the dialogues. On the point made about the economy, we drilled that down to jobs and what that means for families, communities and regions. Deputy Harkin spoke about education. We covered young people, job opportunities, Erasmus, languages, and living, studying and working abroad. No one size fits all so we have to allow in best European practice a degree of subsidiarity, as Brigid alluded to, and that the issues of primary concern in Mediterranean countries are perhaps somewhat different from some of the concerns and focus here. That flexibility has to be unbuilt.

On Deputy Harkin and Senator Chambers's point, we were talking about the environment, climate change and CAP. Those are key fundamentals that direct and focus on how we all live and the food we consume. Keeping it very simple and at a tangible and practical level was how we ensured the buy-in and the engagement on the ground. It was not too highfalutin and it was very practical.

Security and defence was probably the most interesting takeaway for me, if I can be really honest. Whether we were in Cork or Letterkenny, Kilkenny or Galway, it was interesting to see the evolving views and perspectives on security and defence. I heard words during discussions on cybersecurity and cyberterrorism. Interestingly, the most recent Eurobarometer in October shows that 63% of us in Ireland favour a common defence and security policy. The EU average is 77%. We are not too far off that EU average. At 63% that Eurobarometer finding is a significant increase from our own poll back in April and March of this year that saw 49%. It is interesting to see that level of debate and engagement.

We also have the flexibility of having an open-mic session and a little bit of wriggle room opportunity for people to raise questions that may not necessarily be aligned to the five core themes, as I outlined in our briefing note. That flexibility is important but it is also important that it is fed up the chain very concretely, and is seen to deliver at a European level and pan-European level the Irish input. That will be really important. We see it as marrying the best of the bottom-up grassroots initiatives and ensuring we continue to offensively engage and have our say, not rest on our laurels or take a step back, and proactively input into this wider debate. It is vital that we do that. We have a real opportunity now. Given the uncertainty of the future we face and the uncertainty of the Covid pandemic, the onus and responsibility is on us to proactively seize this moment to make it a better and more effective Union for all of our citizens across all member states.

I thank the witnesses and members for joining the debate this morning from Dublin, Cork and Florence, Italy. It was a really engaging debate and it is worth pointing out that the responsibility and the challenge set out, in particular by Professor Brigid Laffan in relation to our education role and the importance of our parliamentary function through this committee, have not been lost on us. While the witnesses were making those suggestions and setting out that stall and challenge, I contacted a school to see whether it would be interested in joining in online and it was. I thank the principal of St. Mary's Holy Faith Secondary School in Killester, Ms Evelyn McLoughlin, whose third year CSPE class joined in with their teacher, Ms Crowley. This shows how quickly and instantaneously we can reach out and bring people in. We had the third year class join in and listen to the witnesses' and members' contributions. I decided to be very non-parochial. I was tempted to contact a school in Donegal but I decided to stick with the capital here. Deputy Seán Haughey gives a big shout out to his constituents in Killester.

The debate sometimes revolves around where we get started and how we get started, but this debate has already started. Sometimes we spend a lot of time looking under the EU bonnet to check the engine. The engine is going well in many respects and recent Brexit discussions and conversations centred on solidarity in Europe and Ireland's continued participation. The witnesses' job has been very well crafted today in analysing the situation. They reflect very well that there are fears and trepidations around what the answer might be if one put a treaty change question to the people. Parliaments in Europe have to change tack and, as parliamentarians, we must focus on the opportunities and the exciting challenges that lie ahead. If there are third year students in Killester listening in this morning, then they need to hear about the opportunities in Brussels and Strasbourg, and the important participatory role we will have in the future. We can reach out and engage. We have the platforms, the technology and the communications and we have to realise what is on our doorstep, whether it is at a local authority level or community engagement level.

Everybody is doing very well but the big thing to take from today is that it is no longer a question of when we will start the conversation on the Conference on the Future of Europe. It has already started and the committee is grateful for the witnesses' contributions today. We have been at this for a number of weeks. We are going to compile a report on this and I think the starter's gun has gone off. What is needed, post Covid-19, is talk about hope. The opposite of hope is despair and we have nothing but hope to talk about within the European project. In order for us to mould a new future, we must reach out to the younger generation, the older generation and people who have felt excluded from the conversation up to now.

Gabhaim buíochas leis an gcoiste agus leis na finnéithe as an díospóireacht. Níl an dualgas atá orainn mar choiste amháin chun spás a dhéanamh don díospóireacht ach tá dualgas orainn i dtaobh ról oideachtais fosta, agus tá sé sin iontach tábhachtach.