Ruairí Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

We are here with statements on Europe Day a day early. I do not think many people in here are proposing that we leave the EU. There are many of us who can talk about the absolute benefits we have seen from the EU. People have described it as the most successful peace process in the world. We know the help it gave our own peace process. We saw the significant solidarity we were shown throughout Brexit and serious infrastructural funding, particularly when this State required it. We know the serious moves it made regarding workers' rights and the advantages of the Single Market.

This, however, does not mean there are no issues with which we must deal. We know the EU has been overly focused on privatisation. We know that if a poll on the EU had taken place during the financial crisis, there would not have been a particularly good result given that the EU left us on our own and all it was worried about was that German money would be paid back, so we must look at the reality across the board.

It is about Europe and it is about domestic governments across Europe recognising the needs of the people. We talk about a swing to the right and populism but what we sometimes fail to deal with is the fact that there are people who are being affected regardless of whether we are talking about poverty, the cost of living crisis, the housing crisis or the health crisis. These are the issues with which we need to deal and we need decision making that happens at a local level. We need to make sure this happens and the EU should facilitate this, but sometimes you can get fed up with the conversations that happen across Europe. I said previously that I attended the Conference on the Future of Europe - I think I said it was like the middle class on tour. We dealt with a significant number of issues that affected people along with the changing world we inhabit but one thing that never came up - obviously something that is not an issue anywhere in Europe - was the issue of working-class communities being affected in particular by drug taking, drug crime, drug violence, drug intimidation and drug addiction. There was no mention of this whatsoever. It can sometimes be the case that there is a disconnect between the domestic level and the European level and this is something with which we need to deal.

An EU that is fit for purpose should be facilitating all of us and dealing with climate change and food security. We also have no problem with regard to co-operation on migration but let us be clear. There always will be a need for states to have control over their own decision making and there always will be a need for bespoke solutions that suit the situation in each state, particularly a state that is now bordered by a non-EU state. I would like the EU to play a positive role in, hopefully, future constitutional change in Ireland but it is difficult to see the EU making those moves until the proper preparatory work is done in this State. That is something that needs to happen.

I would add to the voices of many who have spoken previously, including Deputy Mac Lochlainn, about the Common Fisheries Policy, the fact that we have failed the fishermen of Ireland and many others and the fact that we need to deal with issues facing farmers here. We know the moves that are being made regarding the CAP. We know the serious pressure farmers are under and what they sometimes see as unnecessary bureaucracy.

We have seen the positives and the solidarity. We saw the solidarity that was shown across Europe regarding Ukraine, which was very welcome, but the problem is that, like many other entities across the western world, the EU lost some of its moral compass. When we see what awaits in Rafah, and we know that the bombing has already begun, we are afraid of what Netanyahu intends to unleash. We need to see an independence in foreign policy. We welcome some of what the Irish Government has done but we need to see further moves. We need to see recognition of the state of Palestine. We would like to do this alongside allies or those who see the world in a humanitarian way similar to ourselves. We need to see the Illegal Israeli Settlements Divestment Bill 2023 in play. I welcome the fact that we have moved, as has Trinity College, because of the actions of students. We have moved in the sense of taking €2.95 million of ISIF money from companies involved in the illegal settlements. That is good to see but there is €4.2 million in respect of which we have not seen any move. We need to see the Bill passed and we need to ensure international pressure is maintained and that we play our part to ensure there is a ceasefire and not a genocidal slaughter in Rafah.

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