Thomas Byrne (Fianna Fail)

Certain Government Senators were disquieted by my quorum call. We will continue to call quorums until the Government adheres to its commitment in the programme for Government to deal with the problem of legislation being shunted through at high speed and to ensure that Standing Orders provide a minimum of two weeks between each Stage of a Bill except in exceptional circumstances. Unfortunately, the reality facing the Houses is that the exception is becoming the rule and every legislative debate is on all Stages. This does not provide for proper scrutiny of legislation or allow one to reflect after a Second Stage debate on what amendments might be made. It is not in the interests of democracy. I urge Government Senators not to express their annoyance with me or my colleagues on this side of the House, but with their senior colleagues who are failing to implement their programme for Government.

Contrary to the Minister of State's remark, we are not here at short notice. This agreement was signed on 21 July. Unfortunately, every European leader went away on holiday immediately thereafter. If necessary, it would have been appropriate to recall parliaments all over Europe to ratify this treaty, but that was not done. At all levels, the EU has shunted from crisis to crisis.

Nor are we present because of last November's EU-IMF agreement, as the Minister of State alleged. As the Bill's Long Title states, we are present to ensure the financial stability of the EU and safeguard the financial stability of the euro area as whole.

We welcome the Bill's publication, but it is too late. It is not right that many of the provisions, including those that relate to Greece and the European Financial Stabilisation Mechanism, EFSM, that need to be enacted or ratified by countries have not been finalised by various European bodies, including ECOFIN and the European Commission. I hope the EFSM is the complete solution. To date, we have lurched from one crisis to another. Chancellor Merkel, President Sarkozy and the Taoiseach went on holiday in August and left this matter on the back boiler.

I do not know what the issue was. Perhaps the Minister of State could explain it. A communique rather than the text of the treaty was provided on the website. Is the amendment in Schedule 1 the document that was signed on 21 July? I cannot see a date. The legislation ratifies the document, yet the latter is only a couple of pages long. This treaty was not available to the public on the day, but if it had been available to the Government, could we not have signed it then and ratified the treaty almost immediately?

The fault does not lie with Ireland alone. Parliaments across Europe should have been recalled where their approval was required for ratification. Undoubtedly, Fianna Fáil would have facilitated a recall. Events continue to overtake us.

Fianna Fáil has welcomed the reductions in the two funds' interest rates, which the EU has done in the interests of stability. We and the people at home want to know what impact the reductions will have practically. For example, what impact will they have on this year's budget and will they affect our deficit targets? We are unsure as to whether they will make achieving those targets easier. However, they are of benefit. The Minister of State must clarify the monetary figure we must reach to achieve our targets.

Today brought good news regarding economic growth. This type of good news tends to come before good news on jobs, which must be the priority at Irish and EU level. I have done a bit of research. An interesting wikipedia page - one must check it for accuracy - lists the unemployment rates in countries all over the world. The EU, in particular the euro area, and the US stand out as having high levels. This is not to shift responsibility for the unemployment rate from our Government, but the level is too high in Europe and the US. Europe has long-term strategies to deal with unemployment, such as the 2020 strategy and so on. All relevant Commissioners, European officials and Members of the European Parliament should down tools and consider what immediate solutions or help can be found for the unemployment situation. Europe's strategies are too long term and do not cater for the problem, which is specific to the EU and US rather than just Ireland.

The Government will publish a multi-annual plan shortly, albeit subsequent to the by-election and the presidential election. I urge the Government to publish its plan as soon as possible to give people some level of certainty. I can say this from a strong position, as we announced our plan in the middle of a by-election last year. It was the right thing to do. I urge the Government not to postpone publication for political purposes. It is important that people's lives and job creators have certainty. Consumers want to start spending again but cannot. They need certainty first.

There is little clarity regarding secondary bond purchases and how extensions of maturities on loans will affect us on a day-to-day basis. I do not know whether the Minister of State will be able to offer clarity. The situation changes constantly. Everyday there is another crisis or something that must be addressed, but there is no political will to do so. That will should come from all levels, including from Ireland. It is not good enough for the Taoiseach to say that Chancellor Merkel and President Sarkozy can meet. It is helpful if the leaders of Germany and France meet, but we always seem to be on the outside. We had no direct role in the negotiations that led to the interest rate reductions. They were handed to us on a plate. While we are grateful, Ireland is a member state of the EU and, like other member states, has a right and obligation to be involved in discussions on these issues at European level. It is not enough for us to stand idly by and let Chancellor Merkel and President Sarkozy get on with it. Germany and France are sizable contributors and important countries, but the basis of our membership of the EU is our involvement and voice at the table. We share sovereignty. We give something up, but we get something in return. To the public, this does not seem to be happening in the case of the Merkel-Sarkozy discussions, etc.

We will not oppose the Bill, but my concerns about the legislative procedure and the European and national parliamentary responses are genuine. I do not know how many European parliaments must ratify this treaty. I do not know whether the Minister of State can update the House as to which countries have already ratified it. Where do we appear in the pecking order? We could have ratified it more quickly and been an example to others.