Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Deputy Crowe might deal with this as he is better briefed on it than I am. As we hold the Presidency, it may give the Taoiseach an opportunity to negotiate for a better budget and one that deals with issues such as youth unemployment and other matters.

Last week's Eurogroup finance Ministers meeting considered the use of the ESM, European Stability Mechanism, to recapitalise banks. It is nine months since the Eurogroup committed to separating banking sovereign debt. The Government told us then it was a game changer and a seismic shift. It appears little progress has been made since then and a number of deadlines have passed. We were originally told that the details would be worked out by October 2012. As the Taoiseach said earlier, however:

The agreement last June to break the link between sovereign and banking debt was a watershed moment in the crisis. In December, we set ourselves ambitious timelines for achieving the various pieces of legislation necessary to underpin the commitment. We now need to keep the pressure up for delivery.

Will this issue be discussed at the upcoming summit? Has the Irish Presidency made progress on what is a critical issue for people? Every day without retrospective recapitalisation of the Irish banks is another day when the people here carry the burden of failed banking policies. It is far from clear that any move to recapitalise Irish banks retrospectively is being discussed.

On Monday in London, the Taoiseach was critical of how the policies imposed on this State by Frankfurt and Brussels compounded the mismanagement of the State under Fianna Fáil. The Taoiseach has been in office for two years and nearly €20 billion of the money given to the banks has been under his watch. How much of the €30 billion of the people's money which was given to the pillar banks by the Government and its predecessor will we get back? The Government told us that Ireland would be treated equally yet this issue seems not to be high on the Government's or EU's agenda. We always make a point of wishing the Taoiseach well before these summits. At this summit, he must insist that if the ESM is to be used to recapitalise banks, then it must apply to legacy debts.

Any deal agreed on reform of CAP farm payments scheme must be equitable and fair. As negotiations on the reform of the single farm payment enter a crucial phase, there is an intense and widespread debate in the farming community. Despite some of the perceptions being created, there are substantial numbers of farmers who wish to see a move away from the current scheme to one which will ensure a fairer and more sustainable system for small to medium-sized producers. The perception among the many small to medium-sized producers is that the debate has been skewed in favour of larger producers who are in receipt of large payments.

Over 80% of farmers receive an average payment of just over €5,000. Just 1.62% receive more than €50,000 but that accounts for over 10% of the total payments. There is, understandably, resentment regarding the perception that farmers on lower incomes and payments are in some way unproductive. However, as we all know and as applies to other aspects of the economy, the largest employers and providers on this island and in this State are the small and medium-sized enterprises. What are needed are fair and equitable proposals for the future of CAP. It is also vital that a viable scheme is introduced to encourage the transfer of land to younger farmers to aid future development of the sector.

The recent horsemeat controversy is ongoing. Last night, another product had to be taken from a supermarket's shelves when it was found to contain traces of horsemeat. Thousands of processing jobs and farm livelihoods are dependent on the beef and food sector across this island and the EU.

There is a need for proper traceability and labelling to prevent manufacturers cutting corners by importing inferior or totally different product than advertised. Falsely labelling a product as 100% Irish when it is not undermines the reputation of Irish food produce internationally. Another important point, which has not been ventilated well enough, is that this behaviour totally undermines the rights of consumers. This is a blatantly criminal effort to defraud consumers. Although the EU claims to have one of the most developed traceability systems in the world it is clear that this is a Europe-wide criminal scam and the systems in the processing sector are not 100% fit for purpose. Will this issue be dealt with at the Council meeting? Will the Taoiseach provide an update on what steps have been taken at a European level to deal with it?

The EU heads of mission Jerusalem report was handed to EU Governments in January. I welcome the commitment given by the Taoiseach earlier this week to have the report dealt with under Ireland's EU Council Presidency. Will the Taoiseach confirm that the report will be raised at the forthcoming EU summit? The report suggests that Israel and Israeli settlements in east Jerusalem and the West Bank represent the greatest single threat to the two-state settlement. It finds Israeli policy to be systematic, deliberate and provocative and aimed at making it impossible for Jerusalem to become the capital of two states. Given our history of peace making and conflict resolution on this island there is a particular responsibility on the Government to raise these issues.

If God spares us it will be June before we know it. We are half way through March and that leaves only April and May and then the Irish Presidency will end. It would be a total disaster if we did not use the Presidency to promote peace in the Middle East and to stand up for the rights of citizens there.

It is hard to hear what I am saying when the Minister for Finance is talking.

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