Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)

I thank the Taoiseach for providing that clarification in respect of Mercosur. He will have the full support of this side of the House in insisting that if agreement is reached in the Mercosur talks, the traceability requirements which apply to European producers will also apply to their Brazilian counterparts.

Did the Taoiseach and his colleagues at the Council meeting discuss the necessity to return to the Lisbon Agenda, as distinct from the Lisbon treaty? The Lisbon Agenda was established in order that the EU might compete with the United States in respect of job creation. I note the Taoiseach's most recent 7,000-word tome reflecting on costs, competitiveness and credit. Governments across Europe are now focusing on reducing their deficits. That matter is critical to each of them. It must be stressed that, parallel to this, there is a need to put in place programmes that will make member states, including Ireland, attractive in terms of national and international investment. The latter will give rise to serious potential for job creation.

Does the Taoiseach accept that the Lisbon Agenda, which had the potential to allow Europe to compete with the United States, has not functioned in the way it should because of the lack of commitment of governments to funding that agenda? Does he believe it still holds real value in terms of job creation across the Union, including our own country where job opportunities, for young people in particular, are so important for the future? Can he confirm whether there was any discussion about this among the Heads of Government given that it is of equal importance in terms of the future economic growth of individual countries as distinct from the efforts currently going solely into deficit reduction?

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