Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

578. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if euroscepticism has featured in discussions at European Union Council level or elsewhere; his views on whether euroscepticism will obstruct the European project; if emphasis has been placed on the inevitability of negative consequences for the European Union; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9433/16]

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

579. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if efforts continue to be made to address euroscepticism within the European Union (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9434/16]

Charles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I propose to take Questions Nos. 578 and 579 together.

The issue of euroscepticism is complex and multifaceted, but euroscepticism is by no means a majority position across the EU or its Member States. Governments and citizens across Europe continue to hold broadly positive views on the European Union.

The EU, and Ireland as a Member State, engages with the big issues of the day, whether they relate to stability, jobs and growth, or to challenges external and internal, such as migration and international terrorism. It is important to continue to engage with these issues at the EU-level if we are serious about addressing them. Equally, our Union’s positive image depends to a large degree on its ability to respond to these challenges in a way that commands public confidence.

We must work both to ensure that the EU does its own work better and that it is better communicated to the public. The Government has worked closely with the EU Institutions and our fellow Member States to put the citizen at the heart of the EU agenda for sustainable investment, growth and job creation. The Juncker Commission has strengthened engagement with the public and is making good on its commitment to develop a Commission which is ‘’more ambitious on big things and more modest on little things’’, thus ensuring a focus on the areas where the EU can deliver value and allowing other matters to be regulated at the national level.