Feargal Quinn (Independent)

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Roche. I have just come back from abroad. It is interesting that at the food industry meetings I attended in the past, people enthusiastically turned to me across the table impressed that I was from Ireland, "that smashing country that is doing so well". This time those same people turned to ask what is going to happen on Saturday. These were not just Europeans but people from around the world who are aware of what is happening and of its importance. As far as they were concerned we were letting down the rest of Europe by being greedy.

I was impressed by the way debate on the Bill was introduced by the Minister, and Senator McDowell also, explaining the link between it and the referendum. I spoke at the forum for Europe – I think the Minister of State, Deputy Roche, was there at the time – about one of the instances that influenced me this year in regard to the referendum last year. Of those I spoke to last year after the referendum a number of people said they had voted "No" because they thought that we, as a small nation, were losing out. This year I had a visit from a group of Gaullist Party supporters from France. One of them spoke about the upcoming referendum and asked me how I was going to vote, to which I replied I would be voting "Yes". He said he was disappointed because the French were unhappy about the Nice treaty since it is giving all the power to the small nations. I realised that when one gets a group of different nationalities together – and the Minister explained it very well today in regard to the Northern Ireland treaty – that when one gets locked together in a room for a few days and one emerges with something nobody is really pleased with, then that is probably the best solution. The Nice treaty does not satisfy anyone. It is not the ideal solution with which everyone will be happy. However, I was impressed that the French Gaullists were unhappy that too much power was being given to small nations and that larger ones were losing power.

I know there is a link – the Minister has explained it very well, as has Senator McDowell – between the Bill and the Nice treaty referendum on Saturday. I welcome the Bill in so far as it is better than nothing, but it is not enough and will do little or nothing to address the question of scrutiny and the gap which has become especially obvious since the referendum on the Nice treaty last year. It was to address that gap that the Labour Party introduced this measure as a Private Members' Bill, but this cut-down, emasculated version the Government seeks to rush through into law almost on the eve of the new referendum will not fill the gap. If anything, it will serve to increase the cynicism felt by any voter for whom the gap in scrutiny is an issue. This measure will not revolutionise the way we approach our relationship with Europe. To that extent, it will fail. A revolution is exactly what we need. We need to do something more than the Bill to create a healthy relationship between the people and the European Union to which I hope sincerely we will pledge our allegiance on Saturday.