Mick Wallace (Wexford, Independent)

The Taoiseach will not have been shocked by the failure of the recent summit to solve the European crisis. Pleasing the markets and solving the crisis appear to be strongly linked outcomes. Most people will agree that the markets are unlikely to be satisfied until the European Central Bank agrees to be lender of last resort. The Germans, however, have other ideas. Germany has controlled wages for the past ten years and is the second largest exporter in the world. It has a strong economic base and believes ECB intervention in this area erodes its strength. It is caught in a twist, however, because the failure of other European economies to recover will mean fewer people will buy its exports.

Despite a series of summits this year and a great deal of discussion on what should be done next, little progress has been made. I would be surprised if countries like Austria and Holland were to agree to adopt the same fiscal policies and ways of doing business as countries like Greece and Italy. I do not envisage that such countries will agree to be told how they should run themselves. The notion that people from many different cultures will agree to do things in the same way is fanciful.

The Taoiseach said: "The new arrangements will mean more co-ordination of the fiscal plans of member states. This is not something that should be a concern to Ireland". It should be a concern to us. Does the Government respect the views of the Irish people and the right of the Irish people to have a say in how they are governed? We can change the Government every five years if we do not like the way things are being done. We like to think the people we elect will have an influence on how we are governed. If all of these rules are made in Europe, the Irish people will not have much of a say in how things are done. Will we agree how we should deal with health, education and welfare benefits, or will the Europeans tell us how we should approach such matters? It seems they are already doing so, in some ways. I do not believe that is something the Irish people want.

I am not advocating that we help to bring about the collapse of the euro. We will encounter huge problems, especially in the short term, if the euro collapses. I am aware that half of the AAA-rated countries in Europe are outside the euro. Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Switzerland and Britain still have the AAA rating. If the price of staying in the Europe that is being offered to us is that austerity will be written in stone for the next ten years, the Irish people are entitled to have a say in the matter. It is not for me to say whether we should take it or leave it.

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