Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)

It will outline its view in due course — I will have a view on that also.

Senator de Búrca and other Senators referred to the treaty's title and whether it was to be the Lisbon Treaty or the Reform Treaty. I remind the House that a rose by any other name smells just as sweet. The reality is we should judge this treaty by its content, which is good, positive, progressive and allows Europe to do good things, not just internally but externally.

I will not go down the same path as Senator Doherty, who has left the House, but it does a disservice to us all to characterise, for example, Europe's involvement in Chad, Aceh or the Balkans, where we witnessed the recent horrors, as militarisation. They are civilised, positive, humanitarian interventions in support of democracy in fledgling democracies. I do not understand how any political party can object to this, although I accept the Senator takes a different view on democracy and militarisation than myself. I have always had a horror of the gun and believe it has no place in politics. I welcome that Senator Doherty is engaged in the debate.

Senators Ormonde, de Búrca, Alex White and Doherty, among others, noted that the Irish people will be in a unique position — I believe it is a wonderful position to be in. All of us will have the opportunity as citizens to inform ourselves to the best extent possible and to then make an informed judgment on this treaty.

I disagree with the suggestion that a huge spread of competencies is supposed to be growing. That is a British red-top description of the treaty, which is a rather self-serving and negative approach. If the European Union decides to promote tourism, how in the name of God is that a bad thing? For the life of me, I cannot see how it is a bad thing. If we are going to support European culture, for example, is that a bad thing? It is not. If the European Union decides to take much more concerted action on climate change, is that a bad thing? How could anybody disagree with that? The reality is that we cannot solve climate change alone because Europe accounts for about 16% of global emissions, but the EU can be a positive concerted force in this regard. Sharing competencies therefore aims to increase our capacity to act, for example, on issues including the environment, global terrorism and human trafficking. How can any Member of the House suggest that deciding to take concerted action on such matters is a bad thing?

I thank Members for their contributions. I look forward to the debate and agree with Members that it must be respectful, focused and, above all else, truthful. Otherwise, it would be a disservice to the Irish people and to democracy. In the past, the Irish people have shown — and they certainly showed it in the second Nice Treaty referendum — that when we carried on the discussion in a way that respected different views and concerns, and were truthful and focused on the facts, they could make their judgment. My judgment is that if we put all our efforts into it and leave aside political partisanship, we will be doing a considerable service not just for Europe but also for this nation. I thank Senators for this opportunity to address the House.