Gay Mitchell (Dublin South Central, Fine Gael)

There is broad support across the House for development aid. It is necessary, however, that we generate ideas on best practice and do not repeat ourselves. I have had the privilege of being a member of the development committee of the European Parliament and its rapporteur on the development co-operation instrument which becomes law from 1 January 2007. It will replace 16 regulations in the area of EU co-operation with the developing world. It has been marathon work and a great opportunity for me to learn much about the developing world. Since becoming an MEP, I have had the privilege of becoming vice-president of the ACP-EU assembly, where ideas are exchanged between parliamentary members from both organisations, the respective councils of ministers and commissions on concerns over EU assistance to the developing world.

The EU project is about peace and stability from which flows prosperity. That philosophy should not be confined to the boundaries of the EU. In a globalised world, the EU must have as its priority international peace and stability. The world's population stands at 6 billion people; by 2050 it will have increased by 2 billion. Up to 90% of that increase will be in the developing world. A future conflagration will come from that part of the world if we continue to allow people exist in the dreadful circumstances prevalent there. Every year, 2 million children under the age of five die for the need of vaccines available in the West for the past 30 years. This cannot continue.

It is not just a question of selflessness but also of selfishness. If we treat the developing world with dignity and take it into our sphere of security, it will be our future trading partner. It will not comprise mass economic migrants, terrorism or those who want to fight their corner for justice. We have selfish and selfless reasons for wanting to ensure the issues of the developing world are top of the agenda.

Ireland has a great tradition of missionaries and NGOs working in the developing world. Ireland also has a recent historical experience of famine. When I was a child, I spoke to an elderly lady in Inchicore who had spoken to someone who had lived through the Famine. It is these experiences that give Ireland a special place in the developing world, particularly Africa.

I welcome the general thrust of the agreement on an all-party and social partnership basis that at last we will meet the 0.7% target. Our economy will not continue to grow the way it has in the past several years. There will be moments in the economic cycle when it will be down. In such times, €200 million, for example, will be taken from the budget for the developing world. If we reach the 0.7% target, we may not be able to maintain it. In a policy document, Concerning our Neighbours, which I published when I was the Fine Gael Party's spokesperson on foreign affairs, I argued for legislating for the 0.7% target to be paid directly from the central fund. It would not, therefore, have to come before the House to be voted on annually in the Estimates. As a result of legislation, interest on the national debt and judges' salaries, for example, are paid directly from the central fund. In the case of judges, their salaries cannot be reduced while they are in office because it may amount to influencing them in the course of their duties.

Through our new found wealth, our society is turning in on itself. One only has to look at the suicide rate and increased alcohol and drug consumption. The middle classes are now at this game. There has been a decline in religious practice and volunteerism. When I was growing up, it was a matter of fact that one joined a political party, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul or another organisation. It is time for us to take stock and ask what sort of leadership we should give to our children and grandchildren. It is time the nation's priorities were reoriented so we share our great good fortune with the world's least privileged. If EU member states wish to emulate best practice in development aid, the Irish example should be the one to follow. That will only happen if we take our responsibilities to the developing world and put it at the top of our foreign policy agenda.

What can we do? It is right that we should provide money but that is not all we must do. We should twin Departments and local authorities with corresponding government bodies in Third World countries. I am familiar with Dublin City Council because I was a member for 20 years and served as Lord Mayor. There are council staff who would gladly give of their expertise in engineering, the provision of clean water and so on. We should also twin our hospitals and schools with those in the states to which we provide development aid.

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