Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)

We have a lead role. The European Union will be led and chaired by the Danish Prime Minister and the Danish Government which have been tasked with this job. The Swedish Presidency and the Commission have been in Delhi and the United States in the past seven days meeting the Obama Administration, the Indian Administration and the Chinese in an effort to ensure that people come to Copenhagen, on the basis of what they had to say at the UN summit called by the Secretary General, with money and a commitment to do the business. That is the defining issue as to whether we will have an outcome.

The most optimistic of advocates of this issue would confirm that it is unlikely a full treaty will be agreed at Copenhagen but what we need to see is that the basic principles and commitments are made so that the detailed work that would follow on from that can be taken as simply the detail beyond the political agreement. In fairness, the European Union is working hard and Ireland has been quite supportive.

Deputy McManus is acutely aware that this is a very technical area and Ireland has been broadly happy with the way the burden-sharing arrangements are being handled. There is still a working group to be undertaken and many member states have concerns about this area but that is a matter for the Union to solve. The Union is taking a leadership role on the global issue and has put its cards on the table in a far more transparent way than others. It is now up to others to come forward with the same degree not only of enthusiasm but evidence that they are prepared to put resources behind what they have to say.

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