Lucinda Creighton (Dublin South East, Fine Gael)

The position of the French and German Governments have in some ways changed and it is fair to state that the political and economical climates have dramatically altered in the past two years. The French Minister of State for European affairs recently stated that alternatives should be considered with regard to Turkish accession, and the CSU, which is part of the governing coalition in Germany, stated it would rather see a privileged partnership than full membership of the European Union. What is the Minister's view on this? Does it alter the playing pitch in any significant way? The French Minister of State also made the point that if Turkey meets the criteria, the question of absorption into the European Union of its 72 million population would be a consideration, which is a new standard for accession.

See this speech in context