Terry Leyden (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome our colleague, Deputy Tom Barry, to the House and wish him well in the election. I hope he does not get too attached to this House today on seeing how it works.

I wish the Cathaoirleach well and thank him for his wonderful chairing of the Seanad over the past four or five years.He has been exemplary in his work, as everyone must agree, as has the Leas-Chathaoirleach, Senator Denis O'Donovan. I thank the Clerk, Clerk Assistant and all the staff who are part and parcel of this work in the Seanad, and wish them a very happy Christmas and a successful new year. I find it a very effective and efficient organisation. Much of that is owed to the Cathaoirleach, the Government Leader and Whip, and the Opposition leader and Whip, Senator Diarmuid Wilson. Much good work has been done over the past four or five years, particularly over the past 12 months when many Bills were amended in this House which would not otherwise have been amended. I compliment Senator Crown on bringing the ban on smoking in cars through this House.

As a former Minister for trade and marketing, will the Leader arrange for a debate early in January to call on the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade to review the trade embargo on Russia. This is a personal call on my own behalf. I am not speaking on behalf of any party but as someone who was a trade Minister. We are aware of and condemn the annexing of Crimea and part of Ukraine by Russia. However, Italy has decided to ignore the EU embargo and to trade with Russia again. We are an open economy and export most of our beef and dairy produce. We are a very efficient producer. It is a major blow to the farming industry that, under European Union law, we can no longer trade with Russia, one of our great friends and trading partners. Given that the Italians have moved in that direction, we should look at this. There is also a precedent. In 1982, when Argentina invaded its occupied islands of the Malvinas, or the Falklands, as others know them, which were occupied by the British Government, we decided not to go along with a European Union embargo. Charles J. Haughey, who was then Taoiseach, decided that he would continue to trade with Argentina. That is my recollection of that time.

We should take an independent stand on international affairs. We were neutral in the Second World War and should remain neutral on international issues such as Russia, the United States and the European Union. I ask the Leader to consider making contact with the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade and asking him to come in, hear the views of Seanad Éireann in this regard and discuss the position regarding Ukraine, Crimea, Russia and the European Union.