Terry Leyden (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

On behalf of those on the Opposition benches, I extend a warm welcome to the Minister of State, Deputy Creighton. I am delighted she got an opportunity to attend this House and I thank her for taking time out from an extremely busy schedule to address the Seanad and provide us with a progress report on the Irish EU Presidency. To date, our Presidency has been successful. We are 57 days into the Presidency and one third of the time has gone. There remain four months which will be extraordinarily busy. The highlight so far has been the fact that the negotiations on the multi-annual financial framework 2014-2020 are on track. The Irish EU Presidency has played an important role in this decision and we have supported this vitally important development. First and foremost, the Irish EU Presidency is about using our leadership role in the pursuit of stability, jobs and growth in Europe. The Government's policy programme for those six months was set out in the details of what exactly we wished to achieve.

President Obama's recent State of the Union speech was very significant. It is certainly something for the Tánaiste to grasp with open arms, given the enormous financial potential of the US and EU economies and the ¤150 billion worth of trade between both blocs. It is particularly significant that Ireland exports 90% of its products and services. I know that the US-EU trade negotiations are not starting until mid-year, but preparations are required and Ireland has to discuss them with its EU partners. I hope the starting point will be on St. Patrick's Day when the Taoiseach meets with President Obama in the White House. It will be an opportunity to bring forward the debate on trade. When the US-EU trade talks are completed they will involve the largest trading bloc in the world.

Moreover, I refer to the uncertainty regarding the future of Britain's membership of the European Union. While ultimately it is to be hoped they will remain within the Union - I believe that to be the wish of the Irish Government and people - the Prime Minister's offer of a referendum in 2017 or thereabouts undoubtedly has created uncertainty at present. Consequently, for multinational companies that are planning ahead for 40 or 50 years, Ireland now is an even more attractive location as, apart from Britain, it is the only English-speaking country of the European Union's 27 member states and this is an opportunity. Moreover, our time location in relation to the United States and Europe is also crucial. The IDA and Enterprise Ireland certainly will be maximising their efforts to attract further investment into the country because their success in attracting overseas industry undoubtedly has been phenomenal. Ireland is such an attractive location because of the quality and education of our workforce. In this context, I note the development regarding PayPal in Dundalk, as well as other such companies which are establishing themselves in Ireland. The great majority of major multinational companies are based here, including their headquarters for Europe, which of course gives us a great status.

A further advantage is Ireland's stability. The current negotiations are ongoing and the workers must decide for themselves what is of greatest benefit for themselves and the country but the existence of such negotiations and our ability to negotiate agreements instead of taking to the streets is a great indication of Ireland's stability. It makes it very attractive for multinational companies which are giving consideration to Europe. They can see what is happening in Greece or in Italy at present, which creates great doubts, while Ireland has a stable democracy. We had a change of government two years ago and, in due course, there will be other changes in the future. However, the point is we still have stability. When I was in the Department of Industry and Commerce with responsibility for trade and marketing, we could go abroad and make the point that Ireland had a tax rate of 12.5%. We could state this had been guaranteed by successive Governments and there would be no change in that policy when that happened.

Finally, on another issue that arose, the Minister of State is aware that I was in Brussels at the end of January and early February. I had not been there for some time and the Ceann Comhairle addressed a meeting, as did Deputies Ciarán Lynch and Hannigan, which was very useful. The issue of youth unemployment is crucial and one aspect that has been considered by the European Union was the establishment of a European Union peace corps for young people. Its purpose would be to use their skills and ability over a period in Europe and to provide some of the current funding for Third World countries through the provision of labour. It would be in the form of intellectual labour, workers, designers, engineers, architects, builders, plasterers and all the trades to maximise and make use of these skills. It has been tried and if she gets an opportunity, the Minister of State might look up the research that has taken place within the European Union. The Ceann Comhairle, Deputy Sean Barrett, highlighted this point when he spoke and I thought it was a very useful contribution. As President in the European Union, I ask the Minister of State to examine the files and perhaps talk to some of the Commissioners on this subject to ascertain whether this possible proposal can be moved further.