Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)

This is a moment of unparalleled crisis for the European Union. It is on the edge of a financial collapse, perhaps more severe than the 2008 crisis because of the number of countries involved. This is not about Greece. The growth and prosperity which Europe has secured over nearly 60 years was achieved because of the ways in which states opened up and became intertwined. This is a genuinely pan-European crisis and much time has been wasted over the past three years in attempts to blame it on individual states.

Everyone who cares about the future of Europe wants the European Council to succeed in agreeing a comprehensive and credible plan to tackle the crisis. Unfortunately, anyone who is following what is happening must conclude that these summits have turned into a shambles.

It is two months since it was accepted that past measures were not working, yet what is emerging is another short-term fix which will cause longer-term damage. We are witnessing a destructive failure of leadership and the pursuit of clearly flawed policies. There has been no attempt by the leaders to work collectively and they appear resolutely committed to a course of trying to stay within a policy framework which cannot work. It may well be that what emerges is the best that could be agreed but it is also likely to be not good enough.

As the Taoiseach likes to point out, we have been holding regular debates about European summits. As with so many of the pretend reforms of the past seven months, the adding of time has been accompanied by the removal of substance. Nothing illustrates this better than the treatment of Dáil Éireann this week and last. Other parliaments have received detailed technical briefings about what is being negotiated. Governments throughout Europe have set out exactly what their positions are. In the case of the Bundestag, it is not only being presented with the detail of negotiations; it will today hold votes, both in committee and in full plenary session. In contrast, the Taoiseach has been asked on at least six occasions in the past fortnight to explain his policies and the proposals which are being considered. He has constantly refused to give any substantive detail. The only serious information which this House has received about what was discussed on Sunday and what will be discussed tonight has come from the media and from Members contacting people in other countries.

Look back at the reports of debates which we have held on previous summits and one will see the Taoiseach and the Minister of State, Deputy Creighton, brushing aside the concerns of Opposition Deputies that agreements were insufficient. They have moved from the heavy amounts of petty partisanship seen in the earlier months to equally unfounded amounts of self-praise. The paraphrasing of official communiqués and widely known outcomes is all we have heard about negotiations.

There has been no attempt to engage in the debate here or to be open about what Ireland's position at the Council will be. The only clear policy is waiting for agreements for which we can claim credit. The Taoiseach's claim during questions last week that Ireland had tabled Greece and bank recapitalisation as agenda items was so brazen that even he has not defended it.

What is known from the media and from contacts in other countries is that some elements of the overall package to be agreed in principle tonight will be positive. However, it will fall far short of providing the clear protection against contagion which is the only way to restore confidence in the eurozone. While the immediate measures on Greece and bank recapitalisation may be sufficient, the scale and terms of available funding for future needs are not enough. At the same time, the reform agenda is heading rapidly down a dead end by focusing on fiscal co-ordination rather than the fundamental issue of financial regulation.

There are those in this House who revel in populist attacks on Europe which are long on empathy but short on substance. I have no sympathy for their approach, which is exactly the same as was employed by members of the Government when they were seeking votes. There is no easy route out of this crisis. The issues involved are highly complex and are, therefore, difficult to get right and easy to misrepresent. There are, however, simple tests which must be met for any package to be credible. The foremost of these is that there must be enough funds readily available to deal with current and possible needs. Given that Italy alone requires €250 billion next year to re-finance existing debt, a genuinely contagion-proof fund would need to be a multiple of what was agreed in July.

Just as important, the fund has to work in such a way as to avoid serious risks to the ratings of different countries and, indeed, the EFSF itself.

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