Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)

I welcome the announcement by Mylan Incorporated of 220 jobs in the Gaeltacht in Connemara. This is a testament to the hard work that has been done by the Government in spite of the awful economic morass in which we find ourselves as a result of the previous speaker's Government's actions. In spite of that economic morass in which we find ourselves, we are still winning new business and new investments and we are, in spite of the economic constraints, sending out signals to the business community that Ireland is open for business and that we are, against the head, doing our very best to restore that economic sovereignty that was lost through the actions of the previous speaker and the Government of which he was a Cabinet member.

For the record of this House and for any historical purposes, Deputy Ó Cuív was a Cabinet Minister in the previous Government that brought this country to its knees. When I listen to the revisionist rubbish coming from that gentlemen's mouth, it would make the hair stand on the back of one's neck. It is an absolute disgrace that anybody who was a Cabinet Minister in the previous Government would come in here and seek to lecture any other Member on this side of the House about where he perceives that we are going wrong in terms of the path that we are on to try to restore our economic sovereignty.

When I listen to his words, I must say that they are quite confused. I did not understand one iota of what he was saying. He contradicted himself when he stated that nobody understands this treaty and then, in another sentence, that the treaty does not go far enough. It was contradictory verbiage. It is time that he was called on the bluff and bluster that we have heard from him these past few months. It behoves us, as parliamentarians, to speak responsibly when we come into this House. We all are prone to oratorical flourishes. I do not exclude myself from that process, but I think we endeavour to speak the truth.

Ratification of this treaty is fundamental to Ireland's recovery. The instability that has plagued the euro has been a destabilising feature of the EU polity and one which has diminished our stature as a continent in hegemonic terms.

The euro is our currency. It is Ireland's currency and the treaty is about bringing stability to the entire eurozone. As a small open economy subject to the vagaries of global economic shifts, Ireland's national interest is best served by our continuation as a member of this currency. Irish ratification of the treaty would further enhance growing international confidence in our ongoing recovery. We are on target to reduce our budget deficit to under 3% by 2015 and our exports are growing strongly.

Nobody would claim that the treaty is the sole answer to Europe's economic problems, but it is a crucial part of a wider package of necessary measures. The treaty must be accompanied by more action to achieve growth and jobs, particularly at EU level. Membership of a strong stable euro is vital for the development of the economy. Achieving a European investment programme for growth and jobs should be a European aspiration and one that is best served by co-operation with our eurozone partners. I reiterate that, only today, Mylan Incorporated announced more than 220 new positions in addition to the existing operations in Ireland. It is incumbent on us to ensure that investments such as this continue in the future.

Ratification of this treaty will help to ensure that Ireland is seen as a safe place to do business. Any claim that rejecting the treaty will mean no more difficult decisions are required is patently false and disingenuous. There have been claims from members of the Opposition that this treaty will lead to further austerity and hardship for the Irish people. To those who call this an austerity treaty I say this. It is a falsehood to create a narrative that implicitly suggests that voting "No" means ending fiscal consolidation. The simple fact is that we, as a sovereign Government, must stabilise our public finances. That is a moral imperative. It is a moral imperative to ensure that future generations are left a half decent legacy with which to live. A debt to GDP ratio of more than 90% damages growth and Ireland's debt to GDP ratio is expected to peak at approximately 118% this year. We take in only €7 million for each €10 million spent. We borrow €44 million daily to run the country. That is equivalent to France borrowing almost €600 million a day. This simply is not sustainable and we cannot afford to leave that burden to future generations.

In Ireland's case, the stability treaty requires us to do no more than we are already doing to rebalance the public finances. The treaty does not prevent investment. What it does is ensure we have sustainable finances, balanced budgets, or budgets in surplus in good times and no unsustainable deficits in recessionary times. Investment is perfectly possible in these circumstances. That is a classical Keynesian theory.

Keynes' theory has been misinterpreted by some to suit some political narratives. Keynes is not simply about stimulus packages that never need to be paid for. The economist, Seamus Coffey of UCC, recently stated that had the treaty and the wider package of measures now being considered through closer macroeconomic surveillance been in place over the past decade, Ireland's economic crash would probably have been less severe and we probably would not have needed a bailout in 2010. Those who oppose this treaty in Ireland never state where Ireland will get the funding for a stimulus package. They only offer slogans about taxing the rich, and yet refuse to back initiatives such as a property tax. They think that Government borrowings do not have to be paid back and that there are no negative consequences to defaulting.

There have also been questions around why Ireland needs access to the European Stability Mechanism if the intention is to return to the markets next year. The Government has every intention of returning to the international lending markets next year. The existence of the ESM will make this process easier. The ESM is a safety net and will mean that we will be in a better bargaining position when we are looking for market funding.

This treaty will come into effect when 12 eurozone countries ratify it by 1 January 2013 or earlier. Unlike previous EU treaties, Ireland does not have a veto over this treaty. The only people affected by an Irish "No" would be the Irish people themselves. Deciding not to ratify this treaty would make Ireland's economic recovery more difficult by, crucially, denying us future access to the ESM. We are working to ensure no second bailout will be necessary, but the very fact of not having the insurance policy of ESM access could undermine international confidence in our recovery.

The Irish Labour Party has long argued that fiscal consolidation must go hand in hand with growth and that one cannot work without the other. That is why we, with our colleagues in Government, are continually pressing for more growth initiatives in Europe.

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