Pat Gallagher (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)

I thank the Opposition spokespersons and Deputy Finian McGrath for their contributions and the interest they have shown in this matter. I also thank them for agreeing to take this motion today.

I wish to clarify, as I have been requested to do, that this proposal was published at the end of July. In administrative terms, Europe closes down in August and we did not return here until the end of September. The Minister would like to have given more time for debate but this was not possible as the Department of Social and Family Affairs had to consult with other Departments. As a result, the Government decided on this matter last Tuesday, which necessitated its passage by both Houses of the Oireachtas this week. We are obliged to report to the President of the Council by next Wednesday, 24 October 2007, which explains this measure's swift passage through the House. While I am willing to apologise for this, the timescale did not permit a longer consideration of the motion. Although it is not a fait accompli, this Commission proposal ensures that we are in a position to participate in any negotiations. As Members know, it could take some time before the proposal is finally decided upon by the Council.

At this stage, it is hard to quantify how many people will benefit from the measure. Given that certain people are already covered by these EU regulations — including stateless persons, refugees and third country nationals who have already worked in at least two member states — it is considered that the numbers over and above these will be relatively low. Consequently, it is expected that the costs will be minimal.

The Government has a responsibility to support the social insurance funds by contributions from the Exchequer if there is a deficit from time to time. It is suggested that there could be such a deficit in a number of years and, if so, those who have contributed to social welfare insurance over the years have no need to be apprehensive because the Government must provide the deficit from the Exchequer. As with the Green Paper, we must take time to digest the report to which Deputies have referred before coming up with a response.

See this speech in context