Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)

Beidh cruinniú mullaigh ann don Aontas Eorpach amárach. An EU summit will take place tomorrow. As Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade is the Tánaiste concerned that EU policy is being proposed by Ms Merkel and Mr. Sarkozy instead of by the Commission? What they propose will not deal with the current crisis but is driven by a federalist agenda. Fianna Fáil has stated time and again that the only solution to the European problem is the ECB becoming a lender of last resort with burden sharing across all member states. The problems we face are not only that borrowers borrowed recklessly but that the banks in the core of Europe lent recklessly also. The crisis was caused by a failure to regulate European and world banks and unrestricted free market policies.

Will the Taoiseach table counter-proposals to the "Merkozy" - Merkel and Sarkozy - proposals to the Commission? Has he at least discussed the issue with President Van Rompuy? Has he discussed the issue with other peripheral states? Will the Tánaiste confirm the proposals on tax harmonisation which will affect our ability to design our own tax policies will be rejected out of hand? Will the Taoiseach tell his European counterparts that the proposed "Merkozy" treaty change is not the best option and might prove unacceptable to many countries? It would happened too slowly and would not be as effective as the ECB adopting a proactive policy in dealing with the crisis.

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