Trevor Sargent (Dublin North, Green Party)

Listening to the Taoiseach I expect universities would say there is a need for improvement and things can be done. To listen to him one would think it was all fine. I wish to ask a question based on the outcome of the informal summit held in Hampton Court. As the Taoiseach stated, the summit did not have a formal agenda. It has been described in the media as a non-committal chat. It is more often referred to by virtue of the fact that it failed to offer solutions in regard to the ill-effects of globalisation or in progressing the issue of the EU budget. The Taoiseach outlined some of them in the previous reply. In that context, does he have a view on the European globalisation adjustment fund that the Commission proposed and that has been backed by the British Prime Minister but not at the time by the German and the Danish Prime Ministers?

Does the Taoiseach have a view on one aspect of the summit which people may have overlooked, namely a common energy policy that was backed by the informal summit? One central part of that which would be of huge concern to many people in Ireland is the approval given to nuclear power being "taken forward on a European basis". Did the Taoiseach offer a position on this? Will he indicate what discussions took place on this energy policy? Was any attention paid to the potential of other types of energy sources, such as renewables or biofuels?

I note the General Affairs and External Relations Council announced the formation of 18 battle groups involving 26 countries. Will the Taoiseach indicate whether Ireland is one of the countries involved and whether the December summit will include elaboration on this arrangement? The Minister for Defence promised a decision on this issue in December. Will that be announced at the mid-December EU summit? Will we have an opportunity to debate it here first?

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