Seán Kyne (Galway West, Fine Gael)

On 31 May the Irish people will be asked to ratify the Treaty on Stability, Coordination and Governance in the Economic and Monetary Union. During and before the Dáil recess, I attended several days of meetings of the Joint Oireachtas Committee on European Affairs which discussed, debated and explored the treaty. Ambassadors, business and employers' groups, trade unions, NGOs, university academics, economists and business journalists participate in these meetings. Participating in these meetings has reinforced my belief that a "Yes" vote is best for Ireland and best for the European Union.

At one session I attended, the Irish Small and Medium Enterprises Association, ISME, Financial Services Ireland, the Irish Farmers' Association, IFA, the Irish Business and Employers Confederation, IBEC, and the Small Firms Association were all represented and all encouraged a "Yes" vote. These groups represent businesses that are surviving, growing and, in some cases, flourishing as part of Europe and they see no benefit to job protection or expansion in a "No" vote. While it is true that this treaty does not create jobs, it provides the stability and confidence necessary to encourage inward investment into this country. I am particularly pleased with the announcement today that 220 jobs will be created in Indreabhán in Connemara by Bioniche Pharma. I warmly welcome the involvement of the IDA and Údarás na Gaeltachta in bringing those jobs to Galway.

At that session I was also particularly pleased that the IFA, which represents our farmers, has asked for a "Yes" vote. Obviously, agriculture is a huge growth industry at present and the agrifood sector has been one of the good news stories in the last number of years. As John Bryan, the president of the IFA, said: "Ireland is a small, open economy with a growing export-dependent agrifood sector with great potential. Membership of a stable euro currency is critical to achieving the Food Harvest 2020 targets for investment, growth in output and exports. IFA is therefore recommending a "Yes" vote to the farming community and rural Ireland, as it believes ratification of the fiscal treaty is in the interest of IFA. It is also in the national interest. We believe a "Yes" vote is a vote of confidence in Ireland and in the EU."

In that session a number of words were used which are key to this treaty. They include "certainty", "responsibility", "investment", "stability", "growth" and "positivity". Ireland has always been at the heart of Europe and this must continue. The treaty is fundamentally about stability. It will encourage wiser and better budget decisions and will formally provide a strengthened safety net for euro zone countries, with each country committing to show solidarity and support to partner countries experiencing economic and financial difficulties. The treaty is also about future security and ensuring that we have a source of funding available at all times if needed. Ireland has experienced several economic shocks caused by an unsustainable economic model which allowed for huge increases in public spending that were financed by temporary property based revenue.

Nobody, regardless of their political colours, can deny that Ireland has a huge gap between revenue and spending. To keep our country going, to maintain schools, hospitals and social services and to finance our social welfare safety net we are dependent on assistance from our European partners. Opponents of the treaty claim it is an austerity treaty. That is wrong. The treaty will put Ireland back in control of its economic destiny, ensuring that debt is reduced to safe levels. Without the support Ireland is currently receiving, the budget deficit would have to be closed in a much shorter time frame, leading to greater austerity measures. A "No" vote will bring about the greatest degree of austerity and hardship because the Government will be faced with the prospect of running out of money and being locked out of the European Stability Mechanism, a €500 billion fund to help countries. It is entirely logical and reasonable that any country receiving the support of its partners under the ESM should be prepared to run sensible budgetary policies. While the discussions at the European affairs committee meetings involved numerous speakers who were negative on the treaty, they did not appear to be able to answer questions about alternative sources of funding to the ESM.

It is also important to note that the treaty does not affect our sovereignty. Ireland will still draft its own budgets and make its own decisions on tax rates, including the corporation tax rates. The budgetary rules all countries will abide by will be the same; how they get there will be up to each individual country. In recognition of the need for clear concise information, over the next few weeks the full text of the treaty along with explanatory material will be distributed to households to help citizens reach an informed decision. A "Yes" vote will send a strong, positive message from Ireland and will protect our currency, promote stability, encourage investment, instill confidence and ultimately put us more firmly on the road to economic recovery.

See this speech in context