Frances Black (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State to the House. I am very concerned about this issue and I completely agree with the concerns raised here today, particularly by Senator Higgins. I firmly believe in Ireland's neutrality, and state in the strongest possible terms that I do not want to see Ireland participating in military schemes such as PESCO. I have listened to the Minister of State, but this scheme calls for permanent structured co-operation in the areas of security and defence with other EU member states. Many of these states are not neutral, and have very different military interests and histories from Ireland's.

We are told we can opt in and opt out, but I cannot see how this respects our constitutional provision on neutrality. There are commitments to spend a bigger share of our budget, the money that pays for hospitals, education and housing, on defence. It has been greeted by other EU leaders as a step towards a European defence union.

Signing up to PESCO would tie Ireland into a relentless long-term spiral of increasing military spending, which would not necessarily go towards much-needed improvements in the terms and conditions of service members nor towards purchasing the best quality equipment available in the open market. These could have been done in this year's budget at a fraction of the cost of joining PESCO.

Another concern about joint procurement is that Ireland's historic freedom from military industrial interest has contributed, along with our neutrality, to our very effective and necessary work on disarmament, from the nuclear non-proliferation treaty to the global ban on cluster munitions. These are medals of honour for Ireland and what we should be proud of.

This issue has been rushed through the Houses and it has not had the level of public debate needed for something as important. If we had that debate, I believe the Irish people would be clear, as they were during the debate on the Lisbon treaty, that they do not want to participate in military schemes such as this. They understand the value of our neutrality and stand against militarisation. They know Ireland has made an enormous contribution to peacebuilding around the world, most recently in the area of nuclear non-proliferation, and that our neutrality is vital to this.

We hear constantly about a crisis of migration, and I am worried that this is the backdrop here. The real crisis is desperate people drowning in the Mediterranean. With growing instability around the world, I do not think the answer is increased militarism. Now, more than ever, Ireland must be clear on its commitment to peace and neutrality.