Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)

I move amendment No. 1:

In page 3, line 14, after "text" to insert "in the English language".

These amendments are largely technical in nature and self-explanatory. The first amendment is to provide for a statement that the text is in the English language. Council of Europe Bills are normally in both French and English.

Amendment No. 2 is also for tidying up purposes. In the context of the Government donating to the Council of Europe Development Bank, it is important, given that in last week's Estimates it walked away from its commitment as regards overseas development assistance. These amendments are appropriate on Report Stage, given the subsequent disgraceful attack by the Minister of State with responsibility for overseas development, Deputy Conor Lenihan, on the aid agencies such as Trócaire and Concern. This attack was crude and intemperate and indicated, on the Minister of State's part, probably complete lack of knowledge as regards the work of development agencies, particularly in the poorest and most distressed parts of Europe. The House has just heard a reference to the evolving situation in Belarus, which may affect the capacity of the Chernobyl charity, and people such as Ms Adi Roche, to continue the inestimable work they have done on behalf of children suffering from the aftermath of the 1986 nuclear disaster.

In the context of the Government agreeing to make a commitment to the European Development Bank, this calls into question its lack of imagination as regards the standing of development money. The excuse given for the Taoiseach walking away from the solemn commitment he made before UN and other bodies as regards reaching the overseas development assistance target of 0.7%, was that the agencies and the Department of Foreign Affairs were unable to spend the money. The Minister of State also indicated this here today. Here we have a blank cheque being sent to the European Development Bank. Unlike our experience with the aid agencies and the bilateral programme of the Department of Foreign Affairs, I do not know whether every penny of this €13 million commitment to the European Development Bank can be accounted for. The Minister expects us to rubber stamp an initiative for the European Development Bank on which there is precious little detailed accountability while his colleague, the newly appointed Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs is free to cast aspersions on organisations such as Trócaire, Concern and Oxfam in order to bolster the naked and shameful turnaround the Taoiseach did in walking away from Ireland's ODA commitment.

In the Estimates last week the commitment made to annual increases over the next two years as well as in the forthcoming Estimate were such that if adhered to, unless our growth in gross national product, GNP, collapses, not only will we undershoot the 0.7% target, but we will almost definitely be below the new target of0.5%. The commitments made are nonsensical in terms of meeting even the anticipated growth projections for the Irish economy given by the ESRI and other bodies for 2005-07. In moving my amendment I deeply regret that it follows in the context of the shameful reneging by an Irish Government, having hawked the commitment around the world at the UN and other places to gain votes for Ireland. The Government is now offering to write a blank cheque for the European Development Bank, while at the same time the Minister of State feels free to cast aspersions on organisations such as Trócaire, Concern and Oxfam. It is a shameful act by this Government and it is a pity that Deputy O'Donnell is not here to participate in this brief comment on the Council of Europe Development Bank Bill.

See this speech in context