Seán Kyne (Galway West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

As Vice Chairman of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on European Affairs, I am delighted to speak on challenges facing the European Union. The European Union is a unique organisation which transcends national boundaries and pools sovereignty from the 28 member states. The fact that it is unique and that no other organisations follow the path that the Union has taken means that the EU faces a number of challenges. One of the main challenges is interaction with people of the various member states. At times, the European Union is viewed as something outside of this country which does not directly impact on us. The reality, however, is that the European Union and its institutions and laws have an impact on Irish people on a daily basis. Regulations and directives govern a myriad of issues ranging from social and health to economic and financial matters. The impact is often not felt, primarily because some of the laws, such as safety regulations, are common sense. One cannot imagine a time without them. However, on other occasions, the impact of the EU, particularly specific EU laws, is keenly felt and has an enormous impact on life. In my constituency of Galway West, for example, there is news today of the publication of the preferred route for a Galway bypass. We were at this stage 14 or 15 years ago, but because of European designations and court challenges to the High Court, the Supreme Court and the European Court of Justice the process was delayed. That has had a direct and lasting impact on the process to alleviate traffic in Galway. It is one area where the EU has had an impact and where it is often viewed in a less than positive light. It is a case of whether habitat or human beings - the people of Galway - are more important. The debate has been ongoing in Galway for a number of years.

Another challenge facing the EU and related to the interaction of the Union with the citizens of the member states is the role of national parliaments. The Lisbon treaty envisaged a much greater role for national parliaments in the workings of the Union, including in the legislative process. I am not convinced that the national parliaments are playing the role that was envisaged. There is such a plethora of legislation, directives, regulations and rules from Europe that scrutiny by national parliamentarians presents a major challenge. In the aftermath of the referendum on the Seanad, I proposed that the Seanad adopt a European approach. I believe the Seanad could play a valuable role in scrutinising legislation from Europe, not just when the legislation is at an advanced stage in the process but from the start and at each stage. As a small member state, this would be significant to ensure our voice is heard.

Recently, I participated in a European delegation to the UK to discuss the implications of the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union. I wish all the candidates the best of luck in the UK elections taking place today. It will be a very important decision for the future of this country. Obviously, we share a common land border with the UK via Northern Ireland and we conduct a huge amount of trade with the UK, as it does with us. There would be huge implications if it decided to withdraw from the EU. It would have a huge impact. We met with a variety of groups during our visit, including Irish people, Irish companies involved in trade there, emigrant groups, representatives of State agencies such as Bord Bia, the ambassador, government and opposition Members of Parliament. There were wide and varied discussions, and we were all conscious of the special relationship between Ireland and the UK and the impact of a possible withdrawal by the UK from the EU. We will not know until the new British Government is formed whether it is likely that a referendum will take place. We were careful not to suggest how anybody might vote in such a referendum, but to convey to people that we have a stake in the result of that referendum. I believe we got our point across and they acknowledged the strong relationship and the strong role this country has with the UK.

The other primary challenge at present is the migrants sailing from the coast of Libya to Italy. At the meeting of the European affairs committee we expressed our appreciation to the Italian ambassador for the role Italy has played in dealing with this challenge. It is beholden on every country to take its fair share of migrants arising from this crisis. No single country can handle it. A number of countries have stepped up to the plate, but many others have not. All countries have a responsibility to do something. This is a crisis. One cannot fault people who wish to come to Europe to improve their lives and to take whatever chances they might think they have. Nobody would blame them for that. Irish people have a strong reputation for emigrating and seeking to improve their lives as well. I do not blame anybody, but we must ensure that every country does its fair share.

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