Lucinda Creighton (Dublin South East, Fine Gael)

-----and it is hostile, partisan, aggressive and unfortunate. If we can engage the people during our Presidency, we will be doing them, the country and the European Union a great service. I take the Senator's point and will consider what else we might be able to do, but we are working on a proposal.

Regarding schools, I launched the Blue Star pilot programme this year and it is hugely successful. I am pleased to say one of the big Europe Day events held yesterday in St. Laurence's School in Greystones featured on the RTE children's news programme yesterday evening. It was a fantastic event for anybody who wanted to be uplifted. I am sometimes accused of being too pro-European Union in certain quarters. I am unashamedly pro-European Union which has been fantastic for this country, the Continent and the world in the role it has played in shaping global policy and in terms of innovations, the social progress made and so on. It was wonderful yesterday to see children from different parts of Europe coming together with Irish children who were dressed up and carrying the flags of the different countries. It was a fantastic occasion and I was proud to be part of it. The Blue Star programme is a pilot programme and we want to crank it up next year, although I will need funding from somewhere. The skies may open up and deliver it, but we-----