Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

This issue came to the Government last week and we agreed to bring it before the House. There will be a full debate on it before a decision is made by this House. The proposal for more structured co-operation on defence and security issues across the European Union has been in development for a number of years. It does not, however, oblige Ireland to do anything. The structure has, essentially, a voluntary opt-in that allows Ireland to choose the projects in respect of which we want partnerships with other countries. Perhaps these could be in areas such as marine surveillance, peacekeeping, training or cyber security. This is a practical response by the European Union to create more structure around co-operation when countries choose, on a voluntary basis, to work together in a more coherent way. The Government will be recommending that Ireland supports the programme, but there will be an opportunity for all Members to have their say on the matter when we debate it in the House.

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