Mr. Crowley, MEP:

This decision should not be confused with issues surrounding the debate on the European constitution. There is sufficient confusion and scaremongering fostered by those opposed to the constitution regarding what it will achieve. Despite the fact that the same arguments were used since the early 1970s by opponents of Ireland's entry into the EEC and at every referendum since then, opponents of the constitution claim that the arguments have validity, even though they have been disproved over that 35-year period. While I welcome the opportunity to debate the issue raised by Mr. Mitchell, MEP, it is important to remember that it is a debate for another day.

Mr. Crowley, MEP:

The treaty that we are now discussing cannot be renegotiated or altered despite what we may do in a Bill in the Oireachtas. The treaty clearly sets down that the position of Ireland's neutrality and the conditions attached to the civil declaration will not be changed. One of the issues that we could look at and discuss sometime in the future is the kind of arrangements in which we may wish to be involved. However, it is not an issue that is relevant to the debate on the European constitution.

Mr. Crowley, MEP:

Turning to an issue the Minister and Proinsias De Rossa, MEP, touched upon earlier, the EU is a unique institution; there is nothing else like it in the world. It does not always run properly and efficiently but what it has done, as Senator Bradford said earlier, is stay true to its founding ideals. It has maintained peace within its core remit area, ensured economic development and co-operation within its core operating area and allowed for prosperity to develop. There are many more things it could do better or more quickly. However, if one looks at a number of areas that affect Ireland and allow for an expansion of opportunities for the Irish people, such as social development, environmental laws and rules and regulations, the EU has been a success.

Mr. Crowley, MEP:

Senator Ross asked about the benefits to Ireland of ratifying the European constitution. I recall that during the debate on the Maastricht treaty I was berated by the Senator for saying that the treaty would provide an additional £12.5 billion in Structural and Cohesion funds. He said that I should have focused on the text of the treaty rather than on the benefits to Ireland. That is the difficulty with this treaty for those of us who are in favour of it. It contains nothing that we can point out as the big idea, such as a single currency, opening up the market for goods, services and capital or creating new EU institutions. It is a more technical and ordered treaty.

Mr. Crowley, MEP:

One of the greatest difficulties that we face, as pointed out by my good friend and colleague Senator Maurice Hayes, is invigorating people and getting them to participate. How do we ensure that people feel a sense of ownership or abhorrence on the issues? Both sides of the debate must be heard in order to get people involved. We are now dealing with a generation of people with no knowledge of what life was like just after the Second World War, while a large percentage of the population has no knowledge of what life was like before the end of the Cold War. They do not understand the sense of risk which motivated the founding fathers of the then EEC.

Mr. Crowley, MEP:

However, that risk still exists because despite the strength that we think we possess, the foundations on which the EU are built are very shaky and depend on each one of us understanding our interdependence to ensure that the gifts we have received from our membership of the EU over the past 30 years will continue to come to Ireland but can also be spread to those new countries that have joined the EU and those that are anxious to join.

Mr. Crowley, MEP:

Speaking on the treaty, the former Chief Rabbi of Great Britain, Jonathan Sacks, said, "This treaty does give dignity to the difference that exists within the European Union and the wider European continent." That is a good place for Ireland to be, at the heart of it. It is an island by geographic circumstances but its heart and soul and the driving force for its future development remain at the very centre of Europe and decision making in Europe.