Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)

For any Government to continue in office, any motion of confidence must be dealt with very quickly. Ireland and Europe stand at a very critical juncture. War is taking place on our Continent. As Minister of State in the Departments of Defence and Foreign Affairs and Trade, I am proud to work with the Tánaiste in making Ireland more secure and in securing our European future in delivering record budgets for our defence and security and in preparing for our Presidency of the Council of the European Union. We are working to address really important issues, our capability gaps and to make us more resilient as a country.

I work with the Tánaiste to shape EU policies and ambitions in Ireland's interests. In July next year, Ireland takes the lead as we assume the Presidency of the Council of the European Union. Monumental work is under way to ensure that our EU Council Presidency delivers for the EU and all Irish and EU citizens. We cannot be distracted from that work. Let us not forget that when we talk of the European Union, we are talking about ourselves because we are the European Union, no matter how much some Opposition Members would prefer otherwise. At this critical juncture, let us deal with the issues, including issues in health, and rise above the politics of confidence motions.

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