David Cullinane (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

They are Irish MEPs. One of the good things to happen in recent years is that there is much greater all-island co-operation between our MEPs on very important issues such as the Common Agricultural Policy, the Common Fisheries Policy and those areas. We need to consider these issues from an all-island perspective and not in the partitionist way that some do.

The European Union faces big challenges. I was part of a delegation from the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation which travelled to Brussels in January to meet European Commissioners, Secretaries General of some of the directorates and senior civil servants, including Catherine Day. We met many very interesting people. It was a very interesting engagement whose purpose was to improve the relationship between our committee and the EU institutions. One of the things that struck me, including the debate and conversation we had with the Commissioner, is that it is a difficult balancing act to ensure small states are protected from the big states. We have to ensure the European Union can function and is not gridlocked because every member state can hold back every vote. There is a strong view that every treaty passed in recent years gives more power to Europe and particularly to the big countries because the veto has been reduced and it has moved to qualified majority voting in most areas. The number of MEPs has been reduced and there was an attempt to reduce the Commission, which was not in the interests of small states but only in the interests of big states.

While I support the Bill, I hope that if the Minister ends up in the European Commission, he will be mindful of protecting the small states and their interests. That will convince the people of Europe that the European Union is truly democratic and has the interests of all citizens at heart, that there is no democratic deficit and that big countries cannot control or dominate the small countries. We have to continue to fight for Ireland’s interests and those of all small states. We have punched above our weight in Europe and we have to continue to do it, but we also have to be mindful of the institutional changes that can work against us at times. While some of them work for us, some can work against us. I welcome the Bill and commend the Minister on bringing it forward today.