Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)

I did not inform any parliament of the outcome of the referendum, which is well known in all these countries. It was well known even before the official announcement was made that the people of Ireland had approved the treaty. Tomorrow the formal procedure will be carried out without debate and the instrument of ratification will be forwarded in due course to Rome, where the relevant papers are held. I intend to do this before the European Council meets in the next few weeks so we can confirm we have met all requirements. Other countries are carrying out their own internal ratification procedures and it is not for me to remind people of that, since this country has had its own ratification procedure over a prolonged period. It is a matter for the Presidency and the Commission to deal with those issues in the normal way in terms of expediting the matter and bringing clarity to the process for appointing a Commission. Institutional certainty is also required as part of the preparations for the transition to a new Commission in the aftermath of the ratification of the treaty by all 27 member states.

I made the point yesterday that the appointment of a high representative, who will now become a member of the Commission under the new treaty arrangements, is another consideration for the President of the Commission, Mr. Barroso, before finalising his arrangements for the composition of the Commission. Under the Treaty of Lisbon this is a matter for designation by the European Council. That matter will also have to be addressed in that forum before we finalise the Commission procedures.

On how the Deputy can contact me, he can do so by whatever means he feels competent to use.

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