Shane Ross (Independent)

I also welcome the Taoiseach to the House. In the little time available to me, I would like to relate a small anecdote. In the first week of the Irish Presidency, I was reading through the Sunday newspapers in preparation for a review on a television programme. It struck me that it would be appropriate to review a piece on Europe, which was a topical subject at the time. I should add that I contribute to the Sunday newspapers. It was difficult to find anything about the European Union in the newspapers at the end of the first week of the Irish Presidency. What does that tell us? It tells us that the EU is very distant from the perceived interests of the people. That people do not relate to Europe and the EU community is a real problem. When the Taoiseach participates in the European election campaign this year, it would be useful if he, along with the other political parties and everyone else involved, fights the elections on European issues. The European elections have been fought on local issues for a long time and continue to be fought on such issues. As a result, people vote on local issues without relating to European issues. The Taoiseach would make a great contribution by bringing European issues to a European election. It would mean that the people would identify with such issues and with Europe as a whole.

As Senator Quinn so rightly said, the Taoiseach has an ideal and immediate opportunity to intervene in an area and a controversy which means so much to many Irish people. I refer to the Ryanair controversy at Charleroi. It is obvious that the controversy is seen - rightly or wrongly and we can discuss that at another time - as a European intervention in a local issue. I suspect it is seen as an intervention which is not to the benefit of Ireland - as a negative. It is seen as anti-consumer, anti-competitive and an opportunity for Europe to elbow in on low fares, to increase fares and to make travel more difficult and expensive. It would be useful if the Taoiseach could support the Minister for Transport in this intervention, so that we are seen to be relevant on a topical and immediate issue.