Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)

I am pleased to have the opportunity to speak on this Bill at a critical juncture for both the EU and Ireland. The Irish people must make an important decision, not only about the reform treaty but also about the future of this country. I strongly believe that a "Yes" vote will pave the way for Ireland to continue to benefit from EU membership as it has done successfully for the past 35 years. Ní gá dúinn ach féachaint siar ar an méid atá bainte amach againn mar thír agus mar bhall den Eoraip. Smaoinigh gur tír iargúlta í Éire ar imeall na hEorpa agus gur éirigh linn aitheantas agus airgead a fháil ón Eoraip. Idir an dá rud sin d'éirigh linn dul chun cinn an-mhaith a dhéanamh. Féach ar an tír atá againn. Tír í a bhfuil daoine an-bhródúil aisti, mar a bhí i gcónaí. Ach tá dóchas anois ag daoine óga gur féidir leo a n-áit agus a bpáirt a ghlacadh go hiomlán i sochaí na tíre seo, i sochaí na hEorpa agus ar stáitse an domhain.

Féach freisin ar an méid atá bainte amach ó thaobh na Gaeilge de. Ba mhór an dul chun cinn don nGaeilge aitheantas oifigiúil a fháil don teanga cúpla bliain ó shin. Tugann sé spreagadh iontach do dhaoine óga go bhfuil an t-aitheantas sin faighte ag an nGaeilge. Nuair a chualthas an Tánaiste, an Teachta Brian Ó Comhain, ag labhairt neart Gaeilge cúpla seachtain ó shin, thug sé níos mó spreagadh do dhaoine. Tá 160 teanga le clos in Éirinn inniu. Cuireann sé sin dúshlán os ár gcomhair chun ár dteanga féin a labhairt agus a chur chun cinn. Tugann an Eoraip cabhair dúinn chun é sin a dhéanamh.

The reform treaty was brought about as a result of long discussion on the EU treaties and agreement on it was reached last October. It provides for a settled set of structures with which today's 27-member Union can operate effectively for the foreseeable future. The Irish Presidency had a major role to play in the formulation of this treaty because it is largely similar, albeit with some changes and improvements, to the EU constitution that was agreed during the Irish Presidency in 2004. Tribute was paid in this House today to the role of the Taoiseach in bringing about agreement in this regard. However, the reform treaty also has its origins in the Convention on Europe, a body of more than 200 public representatives from the member states, civil society and the EU institutions, which met throughout much of 2003 and in which several Oireachtas Members participated.

As the voice of the Irish people participated in the making of this treaty, it is no wonder that it is now seen as an integrated and well balanced package of key changes that will improve the manner in which the Union does its business, provide for greater democracy and transparency and enable the EU to tackle major issues, such as climate change and globalisation, which no individual country can do alone.

Each main feature of the treaty, which has been well rehearsed in this debate, represents positive improvements in the manner in which the Union conducts its business and in how that business will affect the lives of the citizens. It is important to remember that in the treaty negotiations, Ireland succeeded in achieving its key priorities, including maintaining unanimous decision-making on tax matters, protecting its traditional policy of military neutrality and ensuring balance in the Union's institutions and equality with regard to membership of the Commission.

The reform treaty will provide a renewed sense of direction to the EU, a more effective institutional framework, an explicit recognition of the equality of member states, a strengthened human rights base and a greater capacity for national parliaments to influence EU legislation. This latter element is particularly important because it will give the Oireachtas a new role in EU affairs. This will enhance further the democratic legitimacy of the Union by bringing national parliaments more fully into play. This is an important opportunity for the Oireachtas and is one of the many reasons the reform treaty deserves Members' full support. The reform treaty makes a real attempt to respond to the concerns and interests of citizens. In recent times, the focus of the EU's work increasingly has been on creating a Union that delivers results for its citizens in their capacity as consumers, workers, employers, parents and members of civil society. The reform treaty provides the political and institutional basis to meet the expectations of our citizens.

EU membership has significantly underpinned Ireland's economic, political, social and cultural development in the past 35 years. The economic changes that have taken place since Ireland joined the EU have been remarkable. In 1973, our wealth was barely 60% of the EU average while it is above the EU average at present. In 1973, total employment stood at a little more than 1 million, while 2.1 million people are now in work. In 1973, Ireland had a trade deficit of €340 million while it now has a trade surplus of more than €30 billion. Since 1973, EU funds totalling approximately €58 billion have flowed into Ireland. These resources have made an enormous difference and we have made good use of them. The Single Market allows us unhindered access to a market of almost 500 million people. It is no coincidence that Ireland's period of dramatically enhanced prosperity began in the early 1990s, at approximately the same time as the Single Market's creation.

The impact of our membership on the education sector has been hugely significant. The foundation stone of the European Union's approach to education policy is that while each member state retains full responsibility for, and control of, the content of teaching and vocational education, as well as for the organisation of its own education system, it is acknowledged there is much to be gained from working together, whether to share experiences, co-ordinate approaches to the significant common challenges facing member states or highlight their common European cultural heritage, together with celebrating Europe's cultural diversity.

The Education, Youth and Culture Council of Ministers has provided an important framework to achieve these goals by facilitating co-operation between member states and allowing the free exchange of information and experience on matters of shared interest at ministerial and official level. The open method of co-ordination is a fine example of how this type of co-operation works in practice and how it is grounded in the real concerns of those who work and participate in the education system. It has provided a crucial method for discovering what challenges are common to us and identifying solutions which can feed into the national domestic policy-making process. These relate to real issues, such as indiscipline in classrooms, the integration of migrants or the challenges posed by social inclusion.

The tangible benefits of EU membership to Ireland's education system extend far beyond those policy dimensions, however. It can be seen in practical terms across many aspects of the education area. EU programmes for education, training and youth have created exciting opportunities for young Irish people to study, undergo training, enhance their personal development or work on social projects in other EU countries. For example, the Erasmus programme for university co-operation and student mobility constitutes one of the great success stories of European higher education. In the past 20 years, 24,000 young Irish people have participated in the Erasmus programme and have studied at institutions throughout Europe. This tradition will continue and will strengthen in the next few years as the European lifelong learning programme will provide opportunities for educational partnerships and exchanges involving schools, higher education institutions and the vocational training and adult education sectors.

In recent years, there have been more places available to Irish young people than there has been take-up and I encourage young people to avail of the opportunity afforded by these scholarships under the Erasmus programme. In the next five years, Ireland will receive nearly €81 million from the European Commission-funded lifelong learning programmes to facilitate education and training mobility. This will allow more than 18,500 Irish third level students and lecturing staff to participate in Erasmus educational exchanges, more than 4,000 Irish trainees to benefit from European work placement and approximately 900 schools and 300 adult education organisations to participate in various European partnerships.

The need to enhance qualifications recognition to enable people to move between different countries in Europe has been identified as the key implementation challenge for education and training in the Lisbon process of making Europe more competitive. I recall that many years ago, while on a stagiaire scholarship, the project on which I worked concerned the mutual recognition of degrees and diplomas. Much progress has been made and the process has benefited from Ireland's role in this regard because it has been to the fore in Europe in developing and implementing a national framework of qualifications and in participating in the development of the European qualifications framework. The implementation of the European qualifications framework will lead to enhanced mobility for students and workers across Europe.

In the area of education and training, the European Social Fund has contributed significantly to the development of Ireland's workforce to ensure that it has the requisite quantity and quality of trained and educated people to meet the needs of the labour market and the growing economy. It also has been crucial in tackling unemployment and social exclusion, with a particular focus on the needs of groups facing barriers to participation, such as early school leavers, people with disabilities, women and ethnic minorities. In the last programme for 2000 to 2006, the Department was allocated €450 million in European social funds which were used inter alia to combat early school leaving, implement adult literacy programmes and back-to-education initiatives for vulnerable groups, broaden access to third-level education and meet the skill needs of the high technology sector. In the period from 2007 to 2013, the Department will receive ESF aid of approximately €130 million. In total, Ireland has been allocated €901 million in European social funds and €750 million for regional competitiveness and employment. Projects for which this aid can be used include activating groups outside the workforce, addressing early school leaving, supporting people with disabilities and enhancing the employment of young persons facing social exclusion.

Our EU membership has seen transformational growth and development in Ireland's higher education system, including the development of institutes of technology from their origins as regional technical colleges. This week, credit was given to the late Dr. Paddy Hillery for his role in developing the regional technical colleges, which also owe much to the availability of European social funds. These colleges have been the main catalyst for the widespread access to higher education which is now our major source of national competitive advantage.

These far-sighted investments in higher education capacity made possible by EU membership have created the enormous opportunities enjoyed by the present generation of young Irish people and laid the foundation for the innovation on which our future prosperity will rely. When we joined the EEC in 1972, foreign investment amounted to just €16 million but 35 years later foreign direct investment in Ireland is measured in billions of euro. Foreign companies in Ireland employ more than 135,000 people, account for exports of more than €73 billion per annum and generate €15 billion expenditure in the economy annually. This would not have happened without EU membership. A signal from Ireland that we are somehow reluctant to commit to a future in Europe would inevitably damage our standing in the eyes of foreign investors, which is all the more reason why a "Yes" vote is crucial.

Our experience in the EU shows that small countries can prosper and make their voices heard. By sharing our sovereignty, we have joined others to strengthen our case on many issues of national importance, including agriculture and foreign and economic policy. Without EU membership, we would have been unable to advance or protect our interests to the same degree. By operating collectively with our European partners, we have been able to achieve much more than we could have done by standing alone. It would not make any sense for us to turn our backs on Europe, which is why it is vital that Ireland ratifies the treaty.

See this speech in context