Mr. Seán Kelly:

Ba mhaith liom míle buíochas a ghabháil libh, a Chathaoirligh, a Cheannaire agus a Sheanadóirí, as ucht an cuireadh bheith anseo libh inniu. Is é seo mo chéad uair taobh istigh de dhoirse cáiliúla ársa an tSeanaid. Is geal liom bheith i bhur measc ar feadh tamall beag. In thanking the Leader, Senator Maurice Cummins, for the opportunity to address the House today, I commend him and his office on this excellent outreach initiative to improve communications and dialogue between the Oireachtas and the European Parliament.

I am very grateful for the opportunity and hope this series marks the beginning of a continued, frequent and productive line of communication between the two parliaments. To be afforded 15 to 20 minutes speaking time is a novelty for me - I barely know what to do with it - being so accustomed to the European Parliament's practice of affording one or two minutes at most.

In the midst of Europe's difficulties and given our holding of the rotating Presidency of the Council of Ministers, coinciding with the 40th anniversary of Ireland joining the European Union, it is an appropriate time to reflect on our participation in the European Union and consider how we wish to see it develop in the next 40 years. I congratulate the Seanad on being to the fore in our national discourse on this issue.

Ireland's membership of the European Union has empowered and enriched us. When Ireland joined 40 years ago in 1973, our GDP per capitawas approximately 60% of the then European average. Today, despite the recent economic turmoil, we continue to boast one of the highest GDP per capitaratios in the Union. Living standards have risen to such an extent that modern Ireland looks and feels like a very different country from the Ireland of 40 years ago such are the improvements and developments our participation in the European Union has gained for us.

The clearest embodiment of our membership of the European Union, after the euro, is the Common Agricultural Policy. Up to 2008 Ireland had benefited from almost €44 billion under the CAP. I am cognisant of the fact that my colleagues have already addressed the House on CAP and Common Fisheries Policy reform and I will, therefore, avoid discussing these issues, despite their being a substantial portion of my workload.

The European Union has experienced many difficult phases since its foundation, from accusations of inactivity to incompetence, overreaching and failure. Nobody here would deny that the current difficulty facing Europe, while not an existential crisis, is one of the most challenging to date. As this House has debated many of the issues involved and with my colleagues, I do not wish to bore Members with repetition. However, the situation at the European level is unrecognisable from it was only one year ago. Europe has managed to pull itself back from the brink. While the situation has calmed, in March, unemployment nationally still stood at 14%, while across the European Union it had reached a figure of 10.9%, two depressingly high figures. Worse again are the figures for youth unemployment across Europe. At 23.5%, nearly one quarter of all young people in Europe are unemployed.

Unemployment is a scourge which has continued to wreak havoc across the Continent, not least in Ireland. While we are in the midst of the greatest economic crisis in living memory, the problem of unemployment can only be fundamentally solved through a return to economic growth. Growth and job creation go hand in hand, albeit with a lag between a return to sustainable growth and significant job creation. This House has focused on this issue relentlessly and I hope Senators will continue to do so.

The European Union works slowly, in a somewhat Byzantine manner, while markets, the media and, most importantly, citizens expect rapid, speedy action. This has resulted, several times throughout the crisis, in expectations for the European Union being too high, particularly regarding timeframes. That said, it can also be reasonably stated it has failed to achieve reasonable expectations at other times.

The mantra of "more Europe" is a common, catch-all, silver bullet solution touted by many in the European Parliament and the European Commission without a clear outline of what it would consist of. The failure to communicate is made worse by the sense of disconnection between European institutions and citizens and has led to legitimate questions on credibility.

The need to re-engage with the peoples of Europe has never been more urgent. This is why I am of the firm belief that next year’s European Parliament elections are of such crucial importance. They offer the citizens of Europe the first pan-continental opportunity not only to cast judgment on how the challenges Europe has faced since 2009 have been dealt with, but also to set out how they wish to craft Europe’s future narrative. This is a critical time for Ireland and Europe. It is imperative that charting the way forward and building a shared vision for the future of Europe is a bottom-up process where events such as this provide the forum for expressing views and crafting that shared future.

National parliaments have an integral role to play in this. While Europe is engaged in what can only be described as a mass fire-fighting exercise, we are now at the point where we can and must begin to envisage a future for Europe. The era of fire-fighters is coming to an end. We are about to witness the dawn of a new era of architects. Designing a shared vision of the future and charting the path to achieving this will be a long and arduous process. However, it is also incredibly exciting and exhilarating that for the first time in a generation Europe is being remoulded and reformed before our eyes and with our participation.

My paper today revolves around the theme of beyond the crisis, informed by my work on several European Parliament committees. The construction of our future demands policymakers to be architects and visionaries, capable of brave decisions based on sound evidence, to think long term, to focus on the sustainability of economic decisions, to strive to ensure that both citizens and businesses reap the full benefits of long-term continuing investment in education and to anticipate the infrastructural demands of society and the economy 20 to 40 years down the line.

I am fortunate that the committees that I serve on in the European Parliament are more focused on meeting the long-term future prospects of Europe. I sit on the industry, research and energy, the culture and education and the regional development committees, as well as the delegations for relations with the United States and Canada. I will outline the work of these committees and delegations towards fashioning the architecture of Europe beyond the crisis. The industry and regional development committees focus on the foundations for economic growth and development.

The potential of research and innovation offers Europe the greatest opportunity for future economic growth. From the "eureka" moment onwards, researchers and entrepreneurs must be supported and encouraged in developing their ideas into tangible concepts, as well as fostering their inquisitive entrepreneurial spirit from the genesis of a product to its delivery to the final consumer. In 2010, European leaders adopted the Europe 2020 strategy. It is designed to place the European economy on a sound and sustainable footing. At its core is a recognition that research and innovation are absolutely and fundamentally necessary in fostering and spurring long-term sustainable economic growth.

Horizon 2020 is the programme for implementing this goal. It brings all European funding for research and innovation under one umbrella. The programme will make it easier to avail of EU research and innovation funding schemes. Increased and more streamlined investment in research and innovation will play a core role in economic recovery, the return to jobs and growth and will be vital in regaining European competitiveness. Up to €70 billion is earmarked over the next seven years for Horizon 2020, 3% of European gross domestic product. It represents the greatest commitment ever to research and innovation and is an example of the EU directly investing in the European economy, providing researchers and innovators with solid support and real opportunities.

It comprises three mutually reinforcing pillars. The first, excellence in science, concentrates on basic fundamental research managed by the European Research Council promoting the gold standard for research.

The second pillar - creating industrial leadership and competitive frameworks - revolves around supporting research and innovation by business and entrepreneurs, particularly SMEs in the areas of ICT, nanotechnology and biotechnology. The third pillar - tackling societal challenges - focuses on a broad range of the challenges European society faces now and into the future - issues such as health, demographic change and energy security. To quote the Commissioner for Research and Innovation, Máire Geoghegan-Quinn, "Horizon 2020 means simplification. Since we want our scientists and innovators to spend more time in the lab or workshop and less time filling in forms, we are slashing red tape to make it easier to access financing."

Ireland is already at the forefront of research and innovation in Europe. We are among the best placed member states to fully exploit the funding opportunities offered by Horizon 2020. Over the next seven years, I am confident that our researchers and innovators will continue to secure a disproportionately large amount of European research funding, generating more jobs and higher sustainable real growth. Investment in research and innovation is a solid, sound investment in our future economy and prosperity. Horizon 2020 empowers prepared countries such as Ireland to continue as innovation pioneers in the science and technology spheres, building a stronger, sounder, sustainable economy.

I will move now to the issue of data protection, which has dominated my work on the industry committee over the past year. I attended over 250 external meetings on this and a similar number of meetings within the institutions. With the increasing use of big data, and people living more of their lives online, come big questions regarding privacy issues. Horizon 2020 calls for the development of a framework to safeguard human rights in the digital society so that users can control how their personal data is used by third parties. Big data offers huge potential benefits to society as a whole. It can offer innovative solutions to some of greatest societal challenges in the fields of health research, smart cities, education and the efficient delivery of public services. This was at the heart of my recent week-long conference on EU science, global challenges and global collaboration, the biggest conference ever held in the European Parliament, from 4 March to 8 March.

We are entering a data-driven era, but what does that mean to citizens? There are many benefits, but there are also many legitimate concerns that citizens' privacy is at stake. We must remember that the right to privacy is a fundamental right enshrined in the EU's Charter of Fundamental Rights. As citizens, we demand that our privacy be protected in the context of rapid technological development, and this must be our top priority. Therefore, the Commission came forward in early 2012 with the biggest data protection reform in 20 years, the proposed general data protection regulation. This seeks to update the provisions of the 1995 directive on data protection. I was appointed on behalf of the Parliament's powerful industry, research and energy committee to lead negotiations on this reform in collaboration with the lead civil liberties committee. What we are seeking to do is to provide a clear framework for innovation in big data, which can deliver enormous benefits to society as a whole, without unnecessarily hampering it with meaningless red tape. Key to this balance is trust, so that we as citizens are aware that our data is being protected. As a result, there are a number of key innovations in this reform, focusing on robust corporate governance models, which are anchored in the powerful new mandatory position of the data protection officer. Also, there will be a strong system of administrative sanctions implemented by independent data protection authorities - watchdogs with teeth. Consent will be made clear and unambiguous for data subjects and the relationship between controllers and processors will be clarified, something of crucial importance in the burgeoning context of cloud technology. I have also introduced wording to promote broad consent, which is of key importance in the field of medical research. At the heart of my report has been the goal of achieving a strong balance between the right to privacy and the obligation to promote innovation to be respected in the ongoing negotiations.

An area closely related to research, innovation and data protection is patent protection. It is one of the real triumphs of the Irish Presidency and the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Deputy Richard Bruton, in particular, that agreement has been found, whereby 24 countries have agreed to what is known as the Unified Patent Court Agreement. The importance of patent protection cannot be understated. European businesses invest billions every year in research and innovation, nurturing an idea from the "eureka" moment and guiding it all the way to the marketplace. Recognising and vindicating the rights of businesses and innovators to the ownership of their ideas is crucial in empowering European businesses and researchers to continue to increase their investment in research and innovation, confident in the knowledge that their endeavours will be respected. The patents package provides the framework for this recognition, reducing costs for business and providing a simplified structure for the recognition of patents across Europe, with access to a robust judicial remedy in cases of conflict. It is a crucial step in reducing the burden of red tape for enterprises across Europe through providing innovative European businesses with a one-stop shop for registering and protecting patents within the European Union. It has the potential to unleash economic growth across Europe. It is estimated that it could potentially save European businesses between €150 million and €290 million annually and this is only the initial saving under a simplified system. The true opportunity which patent reform affords European businesses is in unleashing the potential within European businesses and research sectors.

With regard to recent developments at the European Parliament's Regional Development Committee, the committee focuses on the fundamental physical infrastructure required for economic development in Europe's peripheral regions. Ireland has benefited incredibly from regional development funds over the course of the past 40 years through investment in vital economic structures, transport mobility and connectivity, thereby ensuring the necessary economic infrastructure was in place to empower the regions to fulfil their economic potential. The work on regional development has now moved towards those regions which need it most in eastern and southern Europe. While that does not mean the issues and economic potential of peripheral regions in western Europe are forgotten, nonetheless, one is less concerned with roads and railways and more concerned with realising the long-term economic potential of the regions.

I wish to briefly present to the House, if Senators will indulge me for a few more minutes, a summary of a report on the topic of Blue Growth which I authored for the committee and which was overwhelmingly accepted last week by 41 votes to one. The fact that Ireland is an island nation places it in an enviable position to fully benefit from the European Union's new Blue Growth strategy which is fundamentally aimed at utilising our marine resources in a sustainable manner to generate growth and foster job creation. It is being formulated to identify and tackle long-term challenges and highlight synergies within the sector to unleash growth. In concrete terms, it is examining ways of removing the administrative barriers that hamper growth, fostering investment in research and innovation and promoting skills through education and training. It focuses on the aquaculture industry, as well as short-sea shipping, coastal tourism and the offshore wind energy sector which present incredible opportunities for Ireland.

The role of aquaculture in promoting regional development in coastal areas across Europe is central. Some 90% of aquaculture businesses in the European Union are SMEs, providing 80,000 jobs. There is a need for the sector to be supported but, more importantly, to be significantly expanded through adopting innovative methods and schemes, funded through the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund, in promoting the development of aquaculture in deep water, alongside offshore wind farms. My opinion is focused on developing maritime clusters and exploiting the resulting synergies across the sector.

The opportunities for growth and resulting job creation, both normal and innovative, are evident throughout this strategy. This strategy, once completed and implemented fully, has the potential to generate thousands of long-term sustainable jobs directly and indirectly across Ireland and with proper implementation and ambition, millions throughout Europe.

Having touched on what I believe are the major issues which I have worked on in the European Parliament over the past year or so, I will now discuss a topic which may be of more direct interest to Senators. The Lisbon Treaty conferred considerable extra powers on the European Parliament, transforming us as an institution into a full legislative Chamber and an equal partner with the European Council, a fact we do not tire reminding ourselves of in addition to any poor commissioner whose legislative proposals are not quite to some of my colleagues' liking. The same treaty conferred a new, more substantial role on national parliaments as watchdogs for the principle of subsidiarity as part of a wider role to contribute to the good functioning of the Union and right to information. National parliaments are now expected to scrutinise freedom, justice and security issues in addition to their traditional role in treaty change and enlargement.

As the House is aware, the European Commission sends out copies of its legislative proposals and the Oireachtas, along with every other parliament across Europe, has eight weeks to respond. Given the sheer quantity of Commission legislative proposals, I wonder how national parliaments currently manage their responsibilities and I genuinely wonder how their role can be strengthened and reinforced within the context of the development of EU institutions into the future.

While the future of Seanad Éireann will be decided by the people in the exercise of their sovereign right this autumn, I hope that the responsibility of European legislative scrutiny will be given due consideration in whatever new configuration of the Oireachtas develops after the referendum. I note that many Members of this House have been very much to fore in calling for the Seanad to take on these European responsibilities in a structured and comprehensive manner as part of an overall reform of Seanad Éireann. This is certainly a development I would welcome if the Seanad was to be retained.

Tá an t-aitheasc seo tagtha chun deiridh anois. I will finish with one sentence of Euro-speak. I wish to thanking you for good opportunity to speak on this issues today during the Irish Presidency and I wish you very well in your legislation today and today after, vielen dank.