Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)

I welcome the opportunity to speak to the important matter of the forthcoming EU reform treaty. As with previous treaties, the reform treaty is a vitally important one for Ireland and must be comprehensively analysed and discussed both in this House and the public arena. It is regrettable that the matter is the subject of a Dáil debate only because the Opposition sought such an exchange of views, as Deputy Costello pointed out. Only last Thursday we spent a day discussing Dáil committees, Dáil reform and the role of procedures of the House but the approach of the Government to this matter flies in the face of its comments on Dáil reform made last week.

Thus far, most people in this country are familiar with the new treaty only in terms of the Government's recent decision to opt out of certain provisions relating to justice and home affairs. When seeking clarification on why the Government is choosing to opt out and its key concerns, one is met with vague statements about what might happen in certain circumstances that are far from clear or definite.

The only substantial rationale provided by the Government to date has been a concern about a perceived enhancement of the European Public Prosecutor's Office. Objecting on this basis implies a certain distrust of the European Public Prosecutor's Office which is unwarranted and without foundation. The office was provided for in the initial constitutional treaty three years ago and we appeared happy enough at the time with its role and function. The Government did not offer any indication that it was dissatisfied or would seek an opt-out at that point. Closer to the truth is that it simply wishes to follow Britain's lead in seeking an opt-out. Since the United Kingdom has opted out, we do not feel sufficiently confident to fight our corner and instead take the easy option. The mixed feelings of the British public towards the European Union are well known, as are the mixed feelings of the House of Commons and British Government. There is a substantial body of Euroscepticism in Britain and, from the British Government's point of view, securing an opt-out of certain EU treaty provisions is likely to be politically expedient.

In Ireland the situation is vastly different. Since joining the European Community, as it was then known, in 1973, Ireland has benefited greatly. With EU help and support, the economy has been transformed. All decent infrastructural programmes in Ireland are thanks to the Union. We have embraced and benefited from European monetary union and, most importantly, progressed from being an inconsequential island on the periphery of Europe, overly dependent on the United Kingdom, to being a key player in Brussels at the heart of EU affairs. The Fine Gael Party remains proud of its membership of the European Peoples' Party, a group at the heart of European affairs for over 40 years which contains influential public representatives and politicians in each of the 27 member states.

Why are we now altering our approach to European integration and sending a message of Euroscepticism to our European neighbours and colleagues? After all, we did not seek an opt-out of the European constitution which contained essentially the same measures as the reform treaty when published three years ago. Does the Government believe we have received all we can from the European Union and that now it is time to limit co-operation? Has the Progressive Democrats' philosophy that it is better to be aligned with Boston than Berlin become the dominant ideology at the Cabinet table? Members of the House remain to be convinced. So far the Government has been most defensive and less than convincing in its outlook, especially in its opposition to the justice and home affairs regime.

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