Michael Mullins (Fine Gael)

I welcome this opportunity presented by the Leader to have a debate on the fiscal treaty. I join others in thanking the Library and Research Service on the informative presentation it gave us last week. I am pleased the Government is allowing plenty of time for people to debate and become familiar with all the facts before holding this referendum. I urge the Government to ensure the wording of it is clear, concise and easily understood.

Having attended the Library and Research Service presentation I came away from it wondering why we were having a referendum given that most of the provisions of the treaty are already contained in other frameworks. However, I am pleased the Attorney General recommended the holding of a referendum given that the stakes are so high and that all our people are entitled to contribute to the reshaping and strengthening of the eurozone.

At the heart of this treaty is a promise by eurozone countries to support each other through times of crises and market speculation. By voting "Yes" we will help strengthen and protect the euro. During the past year many people have been frightened that if the euro were to fail, their meagre savings would be lost. I had many constituents approach me for advice as to what they should do with their savings and whether they should transfer it into dollars or sterling or what they should do with it. I was slow to give any advice but I offered the opinion that I felt there was too much at stake to allow the euro fail and that I was hopeful we would not see the euro go under. Thankfully, in recent times, as the eurozone countries finally start working closely together, there is much less talk of a euro failure.

We have made a good start in Ireland on the long road to recovery. We are a small, open economy and our living standards and capacity to create jobs depend on our ability to trade and attract investment. For economic recovery to be possible, we need stability in Ireland and in Europe. The Government has made good, steady progress in rebuilding our international reputation and we can see investor confidence increasing. The recent significant job announcements are to be welcomed, but we need to build on these successes if we are to make any impression on the huge jobless figures.

As the only English speaking country in the eurozone, we are at a huge advantage and we should leverage that. I welcome the fact that many of our Ministers are going abroad this St. Patrick's weekend and will forge strong, important links with many countries throughout the world, which it is to be hoped will help investment into the future.

This treaty is a housekeeping exercise. It is about living within our budgets but having an element of flexibility to cater for exceptional circumstances. It is designed to ensure there will be no repeat of the reckless mismanagement that brought us to the brink of bankruptcy under a future Government's watch.

The Irish people will have a major decision to make on the day of the referendum. Do we want to remain at the heart of Europe and contribute to the strengthening and stabilising of the euro? Do we want to ensure we have access to funds in the unlikely event that we may not be in a position to return to the bond markets as soon as we had hoped? Do we want rules-based economic stability, certainty and investment that our recovery needs? Most importantly, do we want to avoid a step back into the unknown, isolation and financial and economic instability that brought us to the brink of collapse?

I appeal to those campaigning for a "No" vote to please stick to the facts. The treaty is not about austerity, septic tanks, turf cutting, household charges or any of the other many issues they want to beat the Government up about. There will be other days and other opportunities for that. The treaty is about our very survival and our ability to recover slowly from the worst economic and financial crisis we have seen since the 1930s in a stronger and more unified eurozone that is focused on financial stability and has the creation of jobs at the heart of economic recovery. This treaty will not solve all the design faults of the eurozone project, as referred to by Senator Barrett, but I hope it is a step in the right direction and I urge the people of Ireland to support it.