Seanad debates

Thursday, 27 November 2003

Address by President of the European Parliament.

 

I hate the language of euro-speak and hope I have avoided using it today. I had a private encounter last night with the Taoiseach, the Minister for Foreign Affairs and the Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs with responsibility for European affairs, Deputy Roche, where we dealt with Presidency issues for the Parliament. The Minister of State, Deputy Roche wants this to be a special theme of the Irish Presidency. I support him and believe we should do some work in this area. This House has many gifted literary Members, such as Senator Norris and others. Let us invent a language that talks about values and capacity to act and, as Senator Maurice Hayes said, fills this wonderful project with a sense of vitality and public purpose. After all, the Union is not merely a big anonymous market filled with economics and regulation, although we must have those too. We did not invent the European model for the CAP and its Byzantine structures.

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