John Dardis (Progressive Democrats)

I propose to share my time with Senators Mansergh and O'Rourke. This Bill is long overdue and were it not for the rejection of the Nice treaty in the last referendum, we could still be waiting for it. In 1997 the all-party committee on the Constitution under the chairmanship of Deputy O'Keeffe stated:

The committee believes the Seanad could play a major role in ensuring this important task is carried out [that is, the task of scrutinising European legislation]. Provision could be made to have MEPs take part in debates in this House, although without voting rights [the appearance of European Parliament president, Mr. Cox here was part of that]. Relevant EU Commissioners and senior EU Commission officials could be invited to the House for discussions on the EU's legislative programme [we have had some of that] and the Seanad could monitor EU regulations and directives and produce reports for the Dáil on the impact of and trends in that legislation. It seems to the committee that if the Seanad tackles such a task with imagination, energy and high critical power, it could convey to the people in clear realistic terms what the European dimension adds to our lives and offer sound advice on how the State should seek to shape EU policies.

It is quite concise and that report has been there since 1997.