Seán Connick (Wexford, Fianna Fail)

I wish to share time with Deputy Dooley.

As Vice Chairman of the Joint Committee on European Scrutiny, I welcome this opportunity for Members to discuss the findings of the recently published special report on the enhanced role for national parliaments in the Lisbon reform treaty. I also wish to take this opportunity to compliment the Chairman, Deputy Perry, other members and officials of the joint committee on the work they did to deliver this timely and informative report.

The nature and responsibilities of the Joint Committee on European Scrutiny will be greatly enhanced under the provisions of the reform treaty. In light of the increased responsibilities the committee will assume if the referendum is passed, it has devoted a great deal of time to examining the enhanced role envisaged for the Oireachtas in the Lisbon reform treaty. Like the other members of the committee who were involved in the publication of this report, I look forward with interest to hearing the views of other Deputies on its contents and on how they foresee the role of the Oireachtas developing under the reform treaty.

The increasing importance of the relationship between the Oireachtas and the European Union was recognised last year when the Joint Committee on European Scrutiny was established. Prior to this, EU scrutiny was dealt with by a mere sub-committee of the Joint Committee on European Affairs. Since its establishment, the Joint Committee on European Scrutiny has examined every item of proposed European legislation. This not only serves to ensure that both the Government and the public are aware of the likely impact that any proposed European legislation will have on Ireland's interests, its also imposes a layer of accountability onto the Government when it is negotiating legislation at European level.

It has been clear for some time that there has been a distance between the institutions of the European Union, on one hand, and the national parliaments and citizens of member states, on the other. This distance has been regularly characterised as a democratic deficit in the EU. While Ireland has been to the forefront of trying to remove this deficit through initiatives such as the establishment of the National Forum on Europe, the Lisbon reform treaty is the first real attempt by the European Union to address this issue.

In the context of the report under discussion, the attempt to remove the democratic deficit in the EU is characterised by the proposals to increase the powers and involvement of national parliaments in the European legislative process. For the first time, national parliaments will have a direct role in the legislative process and this will be enshrined in European law.

Following detailed study of the Lisbon reform treaty and the effects it would have on the relationships among the national parliaments and the European Union, the Joint Committee on European Scrutiny reached a number of conclusions which should be examined in the context of this debate. The joint committee strongly supports the provisions in the Lisbon treaty to enhance the role of national parliaments in the EU political process. For the first time, the role of national parliaments in the EU legislative process will be recognised as a right and they will be entitled to make a contribution throughout the entire legislative process rather than when legislation is presented as a fait accompli. These measures have been strongly welcomed by other national parliaments within the EU. They will strengthen the independence of individual member states and will help remove the divide between the institutions of the EU and the citizens of member states.

The committee welcomes the new subsidiarity policing role for national parliaments, which should lead to better legislation within the EU. The principle of subsidiarity, which states that legislation should only be introduced through the EU when it cannot be successfully implemented at local or national level, has been established in previous EU treaties. Under the Lisbon treaty, however, national parliaments are, for the first time, being accorded a policing role to ensure adherence to the principle of subsidiarity. The yellow and orange cards will allow the Oireachtas and other national parliaments to give a warning to the EU if they are of the view that particular items of legislation do not adhere to the principle of subsidiarity. If sufficient numbers of other national parliaments use this warning system regarding an item of legislation, it must be reviewed. This is the first time national parliaments have been given this level of power over the EU decision-making process. As national parliamentarians, we must welcome this development.

The joint committee also recognises that, for the first time, the role of national parliaments in EU affairs will be separate to that of their national governments. This development will not only increase the power and influence of national parliaments at EU level, it will also strengthen the role of parliaments locally. Separating the roles of parliaments and governments will also allow parliaments to act as watchdogs on governments that are negotiating legislation in Europe. This will ensure that governments act in the best interest of their citizens.

Although the report only examines one element of the Lisbon treaty, the issues outlined in it show how positive the treaty can be for Ireland. The enhanced roles of national parliaments will add to the powers of the Oireachtas, give us a new role in the European legislative process and strengthen our country's place in Europe. These gains for Ireland will be lost if the people of Ireland vote against the Lisbon treaty next week. Having examined these aspects of the Lisbon treaty as part of the joint committee's preparation in drafting this report, I am more convinced than ever that it is in Ireland's interests that the referendum to be passed. I call on the public to vote "Yes".

As Vice Chairman of the Joint Committee on European Scrutiny, I thank the Leas-Cheann Comhairle for the time that has been accorded to the members of that committee to present the report to the House. The issues we have highlighted show the potential to strengthen Ireland's democracy through the Lisbon treaty. I look forward with interest to hearing the views of other Members on the report.

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