Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)

That will be my privilege. I will make the following comment on the issues raised by Deputies Kenny and Gilmore. It is very important to recognise that the country will make a major strategic decision on 12 June next. All parties will vigorously campaign for a "Yes" vote because we believe it is in the national interest to do so and in the interests of the citizens we serve, and for no other reason. Having been involved in campaigns in the past, unfortunately there has always been an element of the campaign which has exaggerated its case and which has not served debate well. Unfortunately, there are some who have had quite cataclysmic visions since 1972 of what our membership of the European Union might entail, all of which have proved false.

We have seen a phase of economic, social and political development which has greatly been influenced by the force for good represented by the European Economic Community, now the European Union.

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