Terry Leyden (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I do not mind a reduction in my speaking time. I welcome the Minister of State back to the House. He was a very good Senator who worked hard. He probably honed his political ability in this House. I always thought he was a very fair-minded, non-political type person. I congratulate him on being made a Minister of State with responsibility for European affairs. I know he is working very hard in that role. I note that the Minister of State did not mention that his predecessor, Deputy Lucinda Creighton, was the Minister of State during the Irish Presidency. I know she has been air brushed out of Fine Gael politics and it is pretty obvious. There is no mention in the Minister of State's contribution of her work. She performed extremely well during the Irish Presidency. She led the Presidency in Europe and was ably assisted by our ambassador in Brussels and the staff seconded to the Presidency for that period of six months and the advance three months preparation period. It was a very successful Presidency, as have all the Irish Presidencies. Our public service contains the most talented representatives. As a former trade Minister I worked in Europe and I know their ability.

The Minister of State has outlined very well the role of the Greek Presidency. He referred to the situation in the Ukraine. I commend his courage in visiting the square in Kiev at this time. I believe Baroness Catherine Ashton that Europe was too heavy-handed with regard to Ukraine. It had been an integral part of the Soviet Union and it relied on Russia for its gas supplies. We moved too far too fast in my opinion. The Minister of State will have a role in a resolution of the issue.

I commend the Minister of State's work with regard to Bosnia and Herzegovina and his efforts in resolving issues in that region. That country's integration into the European Union should be fully supported and it is hoped that it will become a member in time. He did not refer to the Council of Europe even though he is the Minister of State with responsibility for European affairs and assigned to the Council of Europe. Ireland as a founder member of the Council of Europe is in a position of some influence. Deputy Joe O'Reilly is the Fine Gael leader of the delegation to the Council of Europe. Last week we elected a new president of the delegation who is a member of the liberals and democrats group. Peter Gunning is our excellent ambassador. I hope the Minister of State will take an interest in the Council of Europe. The European Union takes priority in policy matters but the EU Court of Human Rights made a very important decision in the O'Keeffe case.

It acts as a very good sounding board because countries such as Russia, Ukraine, Azerbaijan and Albania are members of the Council of Europe. I invite the Minister of State to address the Council of Europe on issues pertaining to the European Union. It is an important area and one that may have been neglected to some extent.

The European Parliament elections will take place on 23 May and the number of MEPs from this State has been reduced from 12 to 11, which makes it very difficult. When Croatia joined, we lost a seat and when the next country joins we will lose another seat. We could be down to six seats in the next ten years. While there is a limit of 751 seats in the Parliament why can we not extend it slightly to allow countries such as Ireland to have representation? We have ended up with unwieldy constituencies meaning it will be very difficult for candidates to campaign and for those elected to represent those areas.

The Minister of State is very busy and is travelling everywhere. I advise him not to neglect the home patch, including Drumcondra, as Mr. Bertie Ahern did every weekend. I assure him that his constituents will not be too impressed by his travels to Kiev, Bosnia Herzegovina or Greece; they will be looking to see if he is available to meet them and make representations. I wish him well in his job, which he is doing very well. I commend him on going out to the universities to meet young people and discuss European affairs.