At the meeting in Rome on 4 October to open the Intergovernmental Conference, the Heads of State or Government of the member and observer countries, including the Taoiseach, set out their broad negotiating stances. The Taoiseach made clear that we will respect the outcome of the convention as a good basis for our work. We do not wish to see all its work unravelled, nor do we want the Intergovernmental Conference to be simply a rubber stamp. We have a number of key concerns we wish to see addressed, including decision-making in taxation matters and other matters in the justice and home affairs area.