Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)

Germany's Chancellor Merkel has injected her obsession with debts and deficits into the fiscal treaty. The Taoiseach might listen to the question so he is able to answer it. When he met Chancellor Merkel, did he mention the significant grievance among people in this country because a very substantial part of our inflated debt results from the activities of German and other European banks which lent recklessly to banks in this country speculating in the Irish property market? It also came from European Central Bank policy of essentially printing cheap money to benefit Germany at that time. Therefore, ordinary people have a significant grievance because they are being asked to pick up 100% of the tab for the gambling of European banks. If she wanted any hope of getting this treaty through, Chancellor Merkel might have considered writing down debts which have been forced on the people of this country as a result of the speculation of bankers and bondholders, particularly German banks.

The Taoiseach stated at the summit where he signed the fiscal treaty, and has repeated here since, that there is now great concern for growth. It is mentioned in the treaty that we need growth and investment. Will the Taoiseach explain why the only concrete target in the treaty requires austerity and cuts to meet the deficit and debt targets in the vast majority of European countries if implemented, but there are no specific figures or measures proposed for growth? What were the discussions about growth, other than simply mentioning the word 28 times in the communiqué at the March summit? The Taoiseach has mentioned it a dozen or so times here. What specific measures are proposed for growth?

Regardless of our views on economics, we all accept that the only way to get growth and jobs is through investment and demand in the economy. In other words, in order to have growth and investment, people must have money in their pockets to buy goods, and the people who have the money - primarily the banks now - must invest that money in the economy. Neither of those is happening and the ingredients of the fiscal treaty are moving precisely in the opposite direction. Two months after the summit where the Taoiseach signed the treaty with Chancellor Merkel, are they not feeling a little lonely and forlorn in Europe, as they seem to be the only people still promoting this treaty unconditionally? Everybody else in Europe is seeking concrete measures to stimulate the economy, create jobs and get investment. Every set of statistics published week on week shows that the austerity agenda is crippling growth in the economy and leading to increases in unemployment. Why are the Taoiseach and Chancellor Merkel virtually alone in saying we should pass this treaty without serious amendment at the very least?

I also asked a question about Egypt. The Taoiseach mentioned that he discussed the Arab spring and there is a very serious repression of democracy activists and independent trade unions ongoing in Egypt now that the spotlight has gone from the country. Is that being discussed? There are, essentially, attempts to crush the Arab spring and the democratic revolution in Egypt but what are European leaders doing and saying about safeguarding the democratic gains of the Egyptian revolution?

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