Alex White (Labour)

I, too, wish to express my satisfaction with the resolution of our difficulties with the Order of Business on Fridays. I thank the Leader for meeting us on the issue.

I concur with what has been said on the Lisbon treaty and the involvement of this House. We held a reasonably good debate on Tuesday but I note that some of my colleagues felt their contributions were curtailed towards the end. I refer in particular to Senator Donohoe, who has made a significant input into this issue. That was the agreed arrangement for the debate and I am not quibbling with it but I concur with Senator O'Toole on the need to revisit the matter regularly. Apparently a resolution will be considered by the summit of EU leaders over the next couple of days. That resolution certainly should be debated in this House. I call on the Leader to arrange a debate next week on the outcome of the summit because we need to ask whether the resolution answers the genuine concerns of the Irish people. On a first reading, it appears to address all the areas of concern to people. However, while it ticks the boxes of taxation, so-called ethical issues and neutrality, we need more detail on how it is proposed to address these issues.

I raised the issue of workers' rights with the Minister for State at the Department of Foreign Affairs during Tuesday's debate. I was surprised that he did not mention the issue in his statement given that it was near the top of the list of concerns of those who were surveyed in the aftermath of the referendum as to why they voted "No". That is a central concern to many people. I agreed with the Minister of State's assertion that the charter is a great achievement in that regard but many people are wondering whether the Government would produce the domestic legislation needed to implement it. The Taoiseach will have to address that issue and not merely because he was asked to do so by the leader of SIPTU. I remind those Senators who wonder about the relevance of this issue and whose eyes glaze over at the mention of the right to collective bargaining and trade union recognition that President-elect Obama is addressing the issue. Robust legislation is planned in the United States, the citadel of capitalism, to allow for a genuine system of trade union recognition so that people can have their voices heard. That is what people in this country are seeking. The charter appears to provide for this goal but it needs to be addressed in this State in the context of our debate on Lisbon.

There has been a lot of talk about respect for those on the other side of the Lisbon debate but those of us who supported a "Yes" vote also deserve respect. We should not be told we are part of a conspiracy to push through a treaty without proper debate or to have our way by way of a second referendum. This accusation was made by some contributors to Tuesday's debate. All of us want a genuine and open debate. Let us start that debate now with a campaign that lasts a year so that the issues can be properly addressed.