2026-05-07

Is mór an onóir dom labhairt sa Dáil inniu ar ócáid Lá na hEorpa. As Minister of State with responsibility for European affairs, I am proud to speak today to mark Europe Day. In less than eight weeks' time, on 1 July 2026, Ireland will take on the Presidency of the Council of the EU for the eighth time. The European project was not built for easy times. It was built precisely for moments like this, and it is delivering for Europe and for the people of Europe. Ba mhaith liom trí rud a dhéanamh inniu. First, I want to acknowledge the significance of this Europe Day, in the context of our Presidency of the Council. Second, I want to set out the priorities Ireland intends to pursue. Third, I want to speak honestly about what is at stake, for Ireland and for Europe, as we prepare to lead. Before I turn to the work ahead, I want to spend a moment on what the European Union has meant for Ireland because it is important, particularly in this House, to say it plainly. In over 53 years of EU membership, Ireland has been transformed. When we joined in 1973, we were an economy heavily dependent on one trading partner, the United Kingdom, with limited access to international markets and no seat at the table, in any of the decisions that shaped our Continent. Our membership of the European Union changed all that. It gave Irish businesses access to a market of 450 million people. It gave Irish students the freedom to study across Europe. It gave Irish workers the right to live and work in 27 countries. It underpinned the Common Agricultural Policy, which supports our farming communities. The European Union protected the peace process in Northern Ireland during Brexit - when the protection of that peace was our first priority - and I restate my thanks to our fellow EU member states, their citizens, parliamentarians and government members for their solidarity during that time. Our EU membership helped us through the financial crisis. It helped us through a global pandemic. For Ireland, EU membership is not a political abstraction; it is the lived reality of every business, every farmer, every student and every family in this State. The Taoiseach has described Ireland's EU Presidency, as a Presidency that will be defined by action. This is a commitment rooted in a clear understanding of what a Council Presidency is, and what it demands. During the Irish EU Presidency, we will act as an honest broker. We will chair the Council's work, across all its formations. We will set agendas, build consensus, broker compromise and move forward a legislative programme of enormous breadth and consequence. We will do this in the interests of all 27 member states. That impartiality is precisely what an EU Presidency is about, and what gives it its authority and influence. The scale of what lies ahead is significant. In Brussels and Luxembourg alone, our Ministers will chair dozens of formal Council meetings. Our officials will lead the work of approximately 180 Council preparatory bodies, most of which meet on a very regular basis. We will lead the Council's legislative engagement, with the European Parliament, across dozens of policy areas. We will chair negotiations in a range of international multilateral forums, including in the UN framework. Here in Ireland, the Taoiseach will host a meeting of the European Political Community, the largest event of its kind ever held in this State, bringing together Heads of State and Government, from 47 European countries to Dublin. I think about the founding fathers and mothers of this country and how proud they would be to see a Taoiseach of Ireland leading 47 Heads of State and Government in Dublin as an equal partner with all of them. We will host an informal meeting of the European Council. We will host up to 22 informal ministerial meetings, with approximately a quarter of these taking place outside Dublin - in every corner of this country - ensuring that the EU Presidency is truly national in its reach. We will set out our full EU Presidency priorities and policy programme in early June, as is traditional. What I can say today is that our work is organised around three broad thematic pillars - competitiveness, values and security. This reflects the pillars of the EU's strategic agenda for 2024 to 2029. The pillars are not independent of one another. They are interconnected and dependent. Without security, there can be no prosperity. Without competitiveness, we cannot sustain our societies, our jobs and our economies. Without values, without democracy, the rule of law, and respect for human rights, none of it matters, and none of it, quite frankly, exists. Competitiveness is what ensures that the European economy thrives, and that its citizens prosper. It is what delivers good jobs, good wages, and a good of life, and it is a genuine priority for Ireland's EU Presidency. The context is clear. Europe faces real and serious competitiveness challenges, exacerbated by the fallout of the conflict in the Middle East, to which I will return. While our Single Market is very successful, it remains a work in progress. The IMF has estimated that internal barriers to trade, in the Single Market, amount to the equivalent of tariffs of 40% on goods and 110% on services. Energy costs are elevated and continue to rise. Investment in research and innovation has lagged. The regulatory burden on businesses, particularly on SMEs, is too high. At the informal European Council in Cyprus, European leaders signed the One Europe, One Market roadmap to address these issues. This has given us firm targets, and a clear timetable. There are approximately 28 proposals, which the joint statement called to be agreed, by the end of the Irish EU Presidency. We intend to deliver on that agenda. We will spare no effort in doing so, and we will rely on a matching level of commitment from other member states, from the Commission and from the European Parliament. Simplification of EU rules is a top priority for this Government, and will be a top priority for our Presidency. The European Council, the democratically elected leaders of the member states of the European Union, has called for a simplification revolution. That language reflects a genuine political consensus around that table, that the regulatory burden on businesses and citizens must be addressed. The Commission has set a target of reducing administrative burdens by 25%, and by 35% for SMEs, by the end of its current mandate in 2029. It has proposed ten simplification packages, known as omnibus packages, to date, covering sustainability reporting, due diligence, chemicals, digital regulations, environmental rules and more. Today, we got political agreement between the Council of Ministers and the European Parliament on the AI omnibus package. Irish members of the European Parliament and the Council were involved. I thank the Cypriot Presidency for its work. This is a democratic process that is happening here to deliver not just easier rules for business but, in this case, more protection for minors and other people affected by nudification use in AI. The savings for businesses that are estimated from the simplification process are about €12 billion a year in the packages that have already been proposed by the Commission. As Minister of State with responsibility for European affairs, I sit on what is known as the General Affairs Council of the European Union. During the EU Presidency, it will be my job to steer this simplification agenda on the General Affairs Council, where it sits. Our primary focus and my primary focus is not deregulation; it is on better regulation. It is cutting red tape. It is about ensuring that the rules we have serve their intended purpose but do not create unnecessary costs and complexity for business. It matters for Ireland too. Simplification can help us address some of our most pressing domestic challenges in infrastructure delivery and housing. Recently, along with six member states in total, I have written to Commissioner Dombrovskis, calling for simplification of permitting and planning rules in order to help us to continue to build more and more houses. That agenda is gaining some considerable traction around the European Union. The Single Market is the engine of our success. Deepening it and completing it in services, in digital and in capital markets is an Irish priority of the longest standing. The savings and investment union, the so-called EU Inc. proposal for company law and progress on the capital markets union are all central to our competitiveness agenda. Another critical area of work for our Presidency, which falls under the General Affairs Council and then with the leaders, will be the negotiation of the new multi-annual financial framework, MFF, which is the EU's long-term budget for 2028 to 2034. The Commission has proposed a budget of €2 trillion to support competitiveness, decarbonisation, security, cohesion and Europe's global role. The shape of the budget will determine what kind of EU we will have for the next seven years and it will be one of the most consequential pieces of work that any EU Presidency undertakes. I am more than happy to come into the Dáil, the Seanad or a committee at any point to update Members on the work as this negotiation continues. Ireland will approach this with seriousness, with ambition and with a commitment to outcomes that work for all member states; including the smallest, the most peripheral, and those most dependent on cohesion funding. We have also set out our national priorities last year, which take a somewhat second place as we take on the Presidency. However, those national priorities are very clear. Central to them will be the Common Agricultural Policy and funding for research and innovation through the Horizon programme based on excellence. We will work very seriously on this. Energy policy is, of course, to the fore again. The conflict in the Middle East has again precipitated an affordability crisis with a direct impact on Irish households and businesses. In response to the impact of events occurring in the Middle East, the Government has responded with a package of substantial measures to help alleviate the pressures on Irish households and businesses. In the medium to long term, decarbonisation and the adoption of green energy will be central to our energy security and competitiveness, and this has been a key focus of the response at EU level. The Government welcomes the Commission’s package of proposed measures recently outlined in the AccelerateEU communication. We will take this work forward during our EU Presidency, and we are committed to making meaningful progress on the grids package and other key files, which will expedite the deployment of renewables and bolster the EU’s security of supply. The renewed agenda for EU-UK co-operation will be a priority during our EU Presidency. This is something that is on the agenda regularly at the General Affairs Council. I welcome the agreed ambition to conclude negotiations on a youth experience scheme, a sanitary and phytosanitary agreement and on linking our respective emission trading systems by the next EU-UK summit. In a challenging geopolitical environment, we see the UK as a vital, like-minded partner and it is in our mutual interest to have a close relationship also in the area of foreign and security policy. The EU is, first and foremost, a union of values. They are set out in Article 2 of the Treaty on European Union. They are not aspirational guidelines. They are legally binding on us and they are the foundation on which everything else is built. We will be an unambiguous champion of those values. We will address challenges to the rule of law, including democratic backsliding, wherever they arise. I will steer the ongoing work in this area, as chair of the General Affairs Council, making full use of the rule of law toolbox, and by paying close attention to the findings of the European Commission's annual Rule of Law Report. The rule of law is not a peripheral concern. It underpins the effective functioning of the Single Market. It is essential to the Single Market and I always say Ireland's own adherence to the rule of law over many decades has been essential to our economic success. The rule of law and our values is what makes EU membership worth having and we must maintain it with conviction and without compromise. Values also means enlargement. It is more than 13 years since a new member state, Croatia, joined the Union. That is too long. The enlargement process is one of the most powerful instruments the EU possesses for security, stability and the long-term prosperity of our Continent. Growing our Union is the best way to secure our Continent. I believe we have a generational opportunity and a generational obligation to keep moving forward. I was in Kyiv six weeks ago to mark St. Patrick’s Day with the Ukrainian people and our diplomats in Kyiv for the occasion of the first official St. Patrick’s Day reception held at Ireland’s Embassy in the city since it opened in 2021. During that visit, I met with senior figures in the Ukrainian Government and gave them Ireland’s personal assurance that we will do everything we can during our EU Presidency to advance Ukraine’s accession process. Ukraine’s destiny lies in the European Union. That conviction will underpin Ireland’s work during our EU Presidency as Ukraine continues its fight against Russia’s illegal and barbaric war. Moldova too has shown deep democratic courage. Its people voted in favour of an EU path for their country, despite relentless external interference. Montenegro might be small in population but it is determined in purpose and it is working to meet the criteria for membership. Albania is advancing. The western Balkans and the former Yugoslavia must not be left waiting indefinitely. As holder of the Presidency, Ireland will work to sustain the momentum on enlargement and to ensure that bilateral disputes cannot be allowed to slow down individual candidacies. We support the use of qualified majority voting when deciding to open negotiating clusters, as proposed by Germany and Slovenia. We believe this is a practical measure to keep progress moving forward while preserving unanimity for the final decisions. In the context of a deteriorating, and increasingly contested international security environment, the need for greater international engagement and co-operation, especially through the EU, is vitally important for Ireland. Ireland is supportive of the initiatives at EU level to increase resilience and capabilities of member states. We see value in member states and partners working together to mitigate the threats and challenges we collectively face. Ireland is investing significantly in its own security and defence architecture to confront new threats and to protect our citizens and our economy. We have increased national defence spending by 43% since 2020. In December, we launched the €1.7 billion Defence Sectoral National Development Plan 2026–2030, which includes major capability upgrades across land, air, maritime and cyber domains. It represents an increase of 55% in capital funding allocated to defence up to 2030 and is the most significant investment package in the Defence Forces in the history of the State. We will adopt a constructive, positive approach to the development of the proposed new European security strategy, including during the upcoming Irish EU Presidency. The Government has consistently been a strong advocate for the rights of the Palestinian people and we continue to use every opportunity within the EU to stress our grave concerns about the situation in Palestine. Over six months into the ceasefire, the humanitarian situation in Gaza remains dire. The majority of Gaza residents are displaced in dangerously unsanitary conditions, while access to essential supplies and services are severely restricted by arbitrary regulations imposed by Israeli authorities. Meanwhile, the situation in the West Bank is deteriorating, where Israeli military operations have caused widespread destruction of civilian infrastructure and homes and significant displacement. Extremist settler violence is also rampant and continues in an environment of impunity. Ireland and Spain first called for a suspension of the EU-Israel association agreement in February 2024. In June 2025, an EU review concluded that Israeli actions breached Article 2, which is the human rights clause of the agreement. At the most recent Foreign Affairs Council, Ireland called for the suspension of the agreement. We will continue to press for appropriate EU action. If we do not act, the viability of the two-state solution and the credibility of the EU is at stake. Since the outbreak of the conflict in Iran, Ireland has been closely engaged with its EU and wider European partners in monitoring and reacting to the developments. We must see the full reopening of the Strait of Hormuz to international shipping to mitigate the economic impacts, which are affecting households across Europe. We have jointly welcomed the ceasefire agreements in the Gulf and the Levant while calling for further negotiations to turn these into lasting peace agreements. Israel and Hezbollah must fully maintain the ceasefire in Lebanon. Ireland has been at the forefront in calling for international law to be upheld at all times. All parties are obliged to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure during conflicts. We also demand the protection of UN peacekeepers. I am deeply saddened by the death of six UNIFIL peacekeepers and the injuring of others in Lebanon. When I went to meet my counterpart in France recently, the first thing I mentioned was that France had recently suffered the deaths of two soldiers and expressed my sympathies to the government of France and to the families. We know Irish families have had similar experiences over many years there and we must constantly remind ourselves of the sacrifices our peacekeepers make. I offer my condolences to the families, comrades and nations of those who were killed. The conflict in Sudan has sadly entered its fourth year, and has become the world's worst humanitarian and protection crisis with over 150,000 dead, a figure estimated to be much higher in reality, and almost 12 million Sudanese forcibly displaced. We remain resolute in our commitment to ensuring this crisis is not sidelined or forgotten. We regularly raise this at EU level. We will continue our active role on the political and humanitarian tracks when we assume the EU Presidency later this year. The Presidency is not only about the six months in which we hold the chair; it is about building Ireland's long-term influence and presence in the European institutions. That is why I believe that the Career for EU strategy, which I launched in 2021, when I was previously Minister of State with responsibility for European affairs, matters. The officials who draft proposals, shape regulation and turn political agreement into operational law are central to how the Union works. The more Irish people in these roles, the more the Irish perspective is heard and understood. I am pleased to report genuine progress. Ireland has increased the number of permanent officials at the key entry grades in the European Commission from 30 in 2022 to 43 by the end of last year. Earlier this year, the Commission ran its main graduate-entry competition for the first time in seven years, and more than 1,700 Irish citizens applied. This is the tenth highest application rate per head of population in the entire Union, so we have come a long way. When I first took the office of Minister of State with responsibility for European affairs, the advice was that this had now reached a crisis point and that we had to do something about it. That is why I launched the Career for EU strategy, which we have continued to push, and we now see the results of that. One other area we emphasised at the time was the provision of more seconded national experts into the European Union system. Now we have the highest number of seconded national experts per capita of any member state in the Commission. These are striking figures, and this is something I am pleased to see success on. It is a project that is very close to my heart. These figures are also a vote of confidence in the European project from a new generation of Irish people who want to shape the European Union's future from the inside. The EU Presidency happens in Ireland as well as in Brussels, Luxembourg and Strasbourg. I am committed to taking the EU Presidency to communities across the country. The Presidency belongs to all of Ireland. We are the European Union. The county pairings programme, which pairs individual Irish counties with EU member states, is one way of doing this. It is creating new connections, new conversations and new relationships at a local level that will outlast the Presidency itself. I have been struck by the enthusiasm the county pairing project has generated. The Communicating Europe initiative is another. It funds local civil society organisations to engage their communities on EU issues. More than 270 events are planned throughout Ireland during the Presidency, ensuring that this is a genuinely national moment. On Saturday this week, we mark the 76th anniversary of the Schuman Declaration. We mark it in a world that Robert Schuman would recognise in its instability, its danger and its need for the kind of creative, principled co-operation he proposed. No institution is perfect, and the EU is not perfect. It moves sometimes frustratingly slowly. However, we must always distinguish, I believe, between the institutions of the European Union and the people we elect to put in the institutions. We should guard the institutions with dear life, and then we can vote for the people whom we want to represent us in the institutions, either through governments or through the European Parliament when those elections happen. I pay tribute - I have done this already in the Seanad - to the current crop of MEPs. There are different political viewpoints from Ireland in the European Parliament, but all the MEPs are visible, working on particular files and doing great service for the country. They are in touch with people. People know what is happening in Brussels and in Strasbourg more than they ever did, and that is welcome because it adds to the democracy. It reminds people that this is a democratic project and that no law can pass through the European Union unless it is approved by the European Parliament, by the member states. The Commission merely proposes. The democratic process, of course, requires compromise, patience and goodwill from 27 very different countries, but the European Union is our institution. It is an expression of the values we share. It is a framework for acting together in the world. The European Union is a guarantee - and we know this guarantee - that no EU member state faces the challenges of our time entirely alone. When Brexit happened, there were MPs in parliaments all over the European Union who all of a sudden became experts on the Irish Border, the North of Ireland and our specificities. It is so encouraging to meet them still, and they are very proud of the work they did. Ireland has always punched above our weight in Europe, since the very day we joined. We have shaped European Union legislation, led European Union negotiations, built European Union institutions and championed European Union values, while also fighting for our national interests at every turn. We have done it as a small state with big ambitions and a genuine commitment to the European project. This is exactly what we will do from 1 July. The challenges that Ireland's EU Presidency will face in competitiveness, in security, in upholding our values, in enlargement and in negotiating a new long-term budget for Europe are real and serious. We need leadership, judgment and determination. We are ready. On Europe Day, let us remember that we are Europe - we are the European Union. Is é mo thuairim go mbeidh Uachtaránacht na hÉireann ar cheann de na hUachtaránachtaí is éifeachtaí a chuir an tír seo ar fáil do Chomhairle an Aontais Eorpaigh. It is my firm belief that Ireland's EU Presidency in 2026 will be one that truly delivers for Ireland, for Europe and for generations to come. It is a matter of considerable pride to me, as an Irish speaker, go mbeidh seo an chéad Uachtaránacht ina mbeidh an Ghaeilge mar theanga oifigiúil de chuid an Aontais Eorpaigh. Táimid tar éis conradh a dhéanamh maidir le haistriúchán agus ateangaireacht a bheith ar fáil anseo in Éirinn do na cruinnithe a bheidh ar siúl. Anois tá an Ghaeilge, sa Chomhairle ar a laghad, comhionann leis na teangacha eile ar fud an Aontais Eorpaigh. It is a matter of considerable pride to me that the Irish language is an official language of the European Union for the first time in an Irish Presidency. We have recently concluded a contract for the provision of interpretative services at the Presidency council meetings for Irish to be available. I can go to a council meeting of the European Union since 2022, and now for the first time in a Presidency, and speak Irish and my Lithuanian colleague on one side can hear me in Lithuanian and my Cypriot colleague on the other side can hear me in Greek, English or whatever they want. That is an extraordinary achievement and shows that the diversity of countries actually finds expression in the European Union, and the Irish language is the classic example of that.

Tosóidh mé le rá go n-aontaím leis an Aire Stáit gur rud an-dearfach agus gur ábhar dóchais é go mbeidh an Ghaeilge in úsáid mar theanga oifigiúil le linn na hUachtaránachta. Tá sé sách tábhachtach go mbeadh an Ghaeilge feiceálach agus in úsáid anseo, sna hinstitiúidí Eorpacha agus in imeachtaí na hUachtaránachta. These statements on Europe are an opportunity to reflect on what the EU was intended to be, its purpose, our place in it, what it is not intended to be and where it is failing. There is no doubt in my mind that Ireland's place is in the EU and that there have been benefits, but there is considerable scope for criticism as well in terms of democracy, the rule of law, human rights and a wide variety of other issues. The Presidency is an important opportunity for Ireland to demonstrate leadership and to identify some of the items of most particular concern to Ireland and Ireland's interests, but also to redress what I think is a serious deficit on the values side as well. I will return to that. In relation to our own interests and priorities, I will raise two items that maybe have not got as much attention. In my opinion, there is an opportunity, or there should be an opportunity, in the context of the EU Presidency in terms of Irish unity. I say that in the context of a thoughtful, considered approach to that. Previous Irish Governments, under the former Taoiseach Enda Kenny, ensured that were the North to reunify with the South, it would access the European Union without any particular constraint. That was something we welcomed at the time and something Sinn Féin and others lobbied for at the time. It was an important step. Clearly, that will be an important part of the constitutional debate at that moment in time. It is my view that it is reckless and short-sighted of the Government not to plan and prepare for Irish unity. No one says that this needs to be rash or rushed, but if we fail to do anything at all, that is the reckless and the thoughtless approach. I think there is scope to have some discussions with other member states about the role the EU can play. I think it will play potentially a crucial role in the event of Irish unity, and we should be thoughtful of that and consider it. There are other items we need to discuss, but this should be part of the debate. The other issue is the whole area of competitiveness. It is true that we need to ensure competitiveness. In my view, from an Irish point of view, we need to ensure that our reliance on energy from other sources, in terms of fossil fuels, is reduced, that we build up our renewables capacity and that we invest in infrastructure and a whole lot of other areas. Too often, the competitiveness agenda becomes a proxy for deregulation and undermining workers' rights. I am particularly concerned, as is the trade union movement, about the Irish Commissioner, Michael McGrath's file and the proposal for a single unified legal entity for companies across the EU. There is a danger that this will allow companies to sidestep Irish labour law. I encourage the Minister of State and the Government to be watchful for that. There are also areas in which we are falling short of EU norms. Collective bargaining is a particular example. That is also something that needs to be addressed. I will return to the issue of values. If any area has shown up the flaws and hypocrisies of the EU at times over the last number of years, it is the area of values. I refer particularly to Gaza and Palestine and the unconditional and unqualified support for Israel from Ursula von der Leyen and Kaja Kallas on behalf of the EU at a pivotal point. That gave political cover for the genocidal destruction that subsequently unfolded. In addition, the EU leaders' muted and almost non-existent response to people from the Global Sumud Flotilla being effectively abducted on the high seas and in international waters, completely contrary to any international law, is completely unacceptable. This should be a priority for the Irish Government. Ireland needs to speak up for international law not only in this region, but in general. The Minister of State might comment on the issue of Israel breaking sanctions against Russia in relation to stolen Ukrainian grain. It is important that the EU make a clear statement against that. Along with its occupation of south Lebanon and its genocidal policies in Gaza, these breaches of sanctions against Russia need to form part of the case for suspending the EU-Israel trade agreement.

Europe Day is meant to be a celebration of peace and unity, when we mark how a continent that emerged from war resolved to work together to ensure future harmony and prosperity. My party, Sinn Féin, is often accused of being sceptical of the EU. That accusation is often thrown around in this House. It may happen in this debate. However, it is simply not the case. Sinn Féin's policies towards the European Union have always been focused on critical engagement. Where measures are in the interests of the Irish people and the peoples of Europe, we support and seek to further them. When they have not been in Ireland's interests, we have opposed them and campaigned to change them, but always from within and always in a constructive manner with a view to creating an inclusive Europe that reflects the needs and aspirations of all its people, not just the few or the elite. We are not anti-EU and we do not want to see Ireland outside of the EU. We simply see a different path forward in Europe. We seek what is in Ireland's best interests, as do Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and others. We are critical of many of the EU's stances, most often in the area of foreign relations, especially where Palestine is concerned. Along with many others, I believe the stance of the EU when it comes to foreign relations is totally out of step with the stances of the majority of its citizens. We do not support a European Union in which a small number of large member states take it on themselves to dictate economic, security or foreign policy to smaller states. As a bloc, the Union provides political cover and trade deals to those who commit genocide and it turns a blind eye to wars of aggression that have had catastrophic impacts on our economies and on the standards of living of workers and their families. Why are we so afraid to say "No" to Israel and the US? Why can we not come together as 27 member states and say what is wrong and what is unacceptable? Why can we not refuse to do business with those who are ethnically cleansing Gaza and the West Bank? Whether it is the result of cowardice or something worse, we have decided that doing business with the oppressor is worth more to us than our principles. Europe Day should not be simply about the end of a world war, but should also be a rallying cry to work towards a world without wars. We have huge diplomatic and economic levers. We can use these to effect real change not just in ending conflicts, but also in preventing conflicts from ever occurring through dialogue and sustainable investment to build up economies in the developing world and through divesting from fossil fuels. The EU has been incredibly passive when it comes to threats and bad actors. We are expected to simply weather the impact of high fuel prices caused by the Russian war in Ukraine and the war of aggression against Iran. The European Council's recent meeting was more concerned about a fresh flow of migrants than about stopping the war against Iran and rebuilding what little peace the Middle East has seen in recent decades. We saw how one powerful state can torpedo any attempts to hold Israel to account by revoking the sweetheart trade deal it has with Europe. The EU could be a powerful force for preventing interstate violence and war. It could be a beacon of hope and solidarity among nations. However, right now, it is an inept bystander that is led by the nose by external actors who have no regard for Europeans or their lives. Surely the time has come to stop being so passive and to work together in solidarity to bring peace, stability and economic prosperity to peoples around the world.

The European Union has contributed incredibly positively to Ireland in many ways. Of course, there was the significant investment by Europe through structural funds and support for the peace process, especially through PEACEPLUS funding, which remains vital. The European Union also stood with Ireland throughout Brexit. I put it to the Minister of State that a united Ireland should be high on Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael's agenda during the EU Presidency. It is right that we acknowledge the work the European Union does and the benefits of our membership but, to some in this House, it seems that any criticism of EU policy amounts to an attack on the concept of our ongoing membership, which is utter nonsense. It seems that we must treat the EU as unique among political organisations and above reproach or critique. It is actually Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael that do the EU a disservice in behaving in this way. Ordinary people will naturally think that there are things the EU does well but also things that it does badly. Failing to acknowledge that contributes to the perception that the Irish Government's attitude to the EU is that you simply do as you are told. Being a real friend and partner means being willing to have difficult conversations, when appropriate. It means standing apart when faced with repugnant behaviour that you simply cannot stand behind. While some in this House today will speak about the EU's contribution to human rights and the rule of law, the fact of the matter is that across great parts of the world the EU has lost all credibility due to its ongoing refusal to sanction Israel for its blatant war crimes and genocide. I acknowledge that the Minister of State's Government joined cause with others in seeking the suspension of the EU-Israel association agreement but it supported Mrs. von der Leyen's reappointment and now laments that her Commission takes no action and blames it for preventing it from fulfilling its commitment on the occupied territories Bill. I caution the Minister of State that it is his Government that undermines the credibility not only of the EU here in Ireland, but of our own political institutions.

"Europe Day is a chance ... to celebrate the community of values we represent and are jointly working to protect and nourish." That is something I read today. Yesterday, the Minister, Deputy McEntee, talked about establishing an international claims committee for Ukraine, which we support. There is rightly outcry and outrage against Russia across the EU. Russia has committed atrocities and there are quite rightly demands for reparations and sanctions. However, Israel has done the same against the Palestinian people. We see apartheid and the daily theft of homes and land by illegal settlers who are paid to travel from all over the world to settle on land that is not theirs and that is stolen. We have seen entire villages obliterated over the past couple of weeks and even in the most recent days. There has been ethnic cleansing and destruction not seen since the assault on Gaza, which still continues. I do not believe there is actually a ceasefire. People are dying every day. The illegal war in Ukraine is horrific and rightly condemned by all right-thinking people. I can understand why people here and abroad see the EU as being hypocritical. A poll that was carried out and published in the last couple of days showed that 45% of people believe the EU is moving in the right direction. Less than a majority of people believe it is going in the right direction. That is a worrying statistic. Imagine the outrage and horror here if the Russian Parliament passed a law to execute Ukrainians only. Israel has passed such a law. The Minister of State complained and expressed outrage but the EU, of which Ireland has been a key member for decades, still gives Israel preferential economic treatment. That money supports genocide and a parliament that will execute Palestinians only and supports money being raised under this agreement to bring settlers in to steal land. The EU is Israel’s largest trading partner, with total goods traded reaching €42.6 billion in 2024, representing 32% of Israel’s total trade. Economic support includes deep integration into EU research programmes, with €1.1 billion in Horizon Europe funding earmarked for Israel. In trade relations, the EU-Israel Association Agreement enables preferential access to the EU for Israel. Israel is in a research and innovation association that involves aerospace companies which have ties to the defence sector – I would not call it the defence sector as the Israel Defense Forces are a murderous sector - in bilateral funding, education and culture. According to the European Union - the Commission - the State of Israel is responsible for an unprecedented level of killing and injury of civilians, a large-scale displacement of population and the systematic destruction of hospitals and medical facilities in Gaza. Israel also implemented a blockade of humanitarian aid that could amount to starvation as a method of war. Israel is in breach of multiple rules and obligations under international law and fails to prevent the crime of genocide as ordered by the International Court of Justice. The hypocrisy in the EU in relation to Israel’s apartheid and genocidal regime knows no bounds. While billions are traded with that apartheid regime, Israeli leaders, some Cabinet members and military leaders are wanted for war crimes. Unfortunately, today the EU is stained with the blood of the Palestinian and Lebanese people. The EU cannot avoid its responsibility and its complicity in this genocide.

We move next to the Labour Party. Deputy Smith has six minutes.

I will be sharing time with Deputy O’Donoghue and we will have five minutes each. I will pick up on one of the final points the Minister of State made. He said that 76 years on, Robert Schuman would probably recognise the instability that exists now. I agree with him in that regard. If we look to the east, we can say that what is happening now represents the realisation of the worst fears from back then. Russia has literally rolled tanks into Ukraine, is carrying out proxy attacks, proxy wars and cyberattacks, and is ultimately operating to destabilise Europe. That has been the fear for many decades and it is being realised. We see the unexpected aspect of this rupture when we look to the west. Throughout the European Union's evolution, the United States was a dependable ally of the Union. That came with concerns - there were issues in relation to the build-up of US military personnel and facilities in mainland Europe - but the US was a dependable economic ally. That is no longer the case. In the last week, the US has announced that it is moving 5,000 troops from Germany. That is something that President Biden had put in train but the notable aspect of the method used by the Trump Administration to carried that out was that there were no negotiations and no forewarning that it was going to happen. Again, we have seen yet another snap decision. It might not be a big deal in and of itself – perhaps it was welcomed by some – but when we look at the first 15 months of Trump 2.0 with a wider view and when we examine the wider trend of tariffs, Greenland and a US approach to NATO which impacts a lot of our European Union allies, we realise that Europe now needs to look away from the US, away from the self-appointed leader of the free world and away from isolationism. This is bringing up some difficult questions for Europe and for Ireland, chiefly in the area of security. We hold our military neutrality very dear. I have been at conferences in Europe over the last 18 months. It is clear that many people in Europe want to move towards a common defence union. That is something we must resist and we can resist. We must do so while improving our own security, however, because the charge against Ireland is that we have not taken our own security seriously. It has been a decades-long embarrassment that we have been reliant on Britain, the US and others for our own security. The security threats have changed - the new threats are potential cyberattacks and attacks to undersea cables – so we need a sophisticated approach. It is not the build-up of tanks, jets or troops; it is the build-up of capacity and of sophistication. We need to work with our allies and, in doing so, to be forthright that we not want to join NATO or a common defence union and nor will we ever. It may be a delicate path but it is a path that we must take with clarity. We must not be afraid and we must not hide behind vague definitions of this, that and the other. I note recently, the Canadian Prime Minister, Mark Carney, was the first non-European leader to attend a meeting of the European Political Community. That is more than merely symbolic. It is an important indication because it is another signal following Prime Minister Carney's speech in February that we cannot follow, and the European Union cannot follow, the United States into isolationism. There is a troubled and uncertain road ahead, but Europe needs to pull together and answer and meet hard challenges and hard questions with honesty and forthrightness. Europe has consistently let itself down in the last number of years in its approach to Israel. It is inconsistent, inhumane, unethical and downright wrong that Europe is not calling out Israel for the genocide that is being carried out on the people of Palestine, for what it is doing in Lebanon and for its continued expansion of the illegal settlements in the West Bank. Europe will not retain any moral leadership, will fail to bring along allies and will fail to bring along the people of Ireland if it continues to treat Israel in this exceptional manner by excusing these despicable acts that continue. Ireland and the Irish people remain, by and large, positively disposed towards the EU. I think Brexit had a lot to do with that. Without doubt, a lot of EU states stood by us during that process but we cannot take that support for granted. We must be honest and forthright. We must be committed to Europe but we must also be able to pursue our own sovereign interests.

I am glad the Minister of State mentioned the Schuman Declaration from more than 70 years ago. I always feel like Jean Monnet always gets hard done by. It was the diplomat who did most of the work but the politician got his name on it. The EU is unique. It is the longest lasting confederation of states probably in the history of the world. Is it perfect? No. Is it the best we have got in the world we have? Yes. The European Movement study published this week showed that 82% of Irish people believe being in Europe is where we should be, as do I. We should be at the heart of it. On Saturday, as we mark Europe Day, we celebrate not just a union of countries, but a shared vision that is based on co-operation, peace and opportunity. For Ireland, membership of the EU has been nothing short of transformative. It has shaped our economy, strengthened our voice in the world and helped to define the kind of country we are today. When Ireland joined the European project in 1973, we were a very different nation. We were economically limited and we depended heavily on a small number of trading partners. Membership opened doors. It connected us to the Single Market, one of the greatest achievements of the European Union and something that needs to be finished. Through it, Irish businesses can trade freely across Europe without tariffs or barriers, giving companies access to hundreds of millions of consumers. For a country of our size, that access has been vital, driving growth, creating jobs and helping to transform Ireland into one of the most open and successful economies in the world. That is more important than ever now, given Trump's tariffs. Perhaps even more importantly, the European Union has amplified Ireland’s voice in the world as a small nation. At the European table, Ireland helps to shape decisions on climate action, digital innovation, workers’ rights and global trade. We are not just participants; we are contributors to our collective future. The value of that solidarity became especially clear during Brexit. I thank the Minister of State for mentioning that. When the United Kingdom decided to leave the European Union, Ireland faced unique challenges, politically, socially and economically yet through that process EU member states stood shoulder to shoulder with us. It recognised the importance of peace on this island, that we needed not to have a hard border on the island, and it safeguarded the economy in the long term. That unity ensured that Ireland's concerns were not sidelined, but prioritised. In a moment of uncertainty, EU membership provided stability, support, and strength. We reject that very British concept of euroscepticism. I said it last year and I stand by it. For young people in Ireland, EU membership means opportunity. The freedom to live, study, and work abroad has broadened horizons of both young people and the country, and created connections that span cultures and countries. It has made Europe not just a place on a map, but a shared home. Of course, membership is not without its challenges. Being part of a union requires compromise, responsibility, and engagement. The institutions of Europe need fundamental reform. I think the Minister of State would agree with me on that. It is through working together that we enhance our sovereignty and Europe's by deepening the pool together. As we look to the future, the importance of Ireland's place in Europe remains clear. In a world of uncertainty, co-operation matters more than ever. The European Union gives us a platform to face challenges collectively, whether climate change, economic stability, or global security. Europe Day is a reminder that unity is not about losing identity, but is about strengthening it through partnership. Ireland's story within Europe shows what is possible when countries choose collaboration over isolation. On Saturday, we celebrate not just what Europe has given us, but what we contribute in return, our ideas, our values, and our commitment to a shared future.

Over 70 years ago, Robert Schuman delivered his declaration that would change the course of European history. One of his key declarations was, "Europe will not be made all at once, or according to a single plan. It will be built through concrete achievements which first create a de facto solidarity." His vision was both bold and quite simple at the same time, to make war between larger member states not just unthinkable but materially impossible, by pooling their coal and steel production. The European Coal and Steel Community laid the foundations of what has become the European Union today. Since Ireland joined in 1973, we have seen significant and material progress on our shores and across our country, whether it be development of our infrastructure, support and funding for our agricultural sector, access to the Single Market, or foreign direct investment through our gateway to Europe. I would strongly question whether we would have seen the foreign direct investment that we have had if we were not an important and integral member state of the Union. There is also the adoption of the euro. When the euro was adopted, I happened to be living in Switzerland. I remember getting in a car and travelling to Germany with one of my friends from Germany, Italy and France on a road trip to get a few euro notes just to say that we had them. That was a day when I had first-hand experience and a memory of solidarity with European counterparts that was beyond just being Irish. That has only grown today and we all have our own memories of how we are not just Irish but Europeans, and long may that continue. Other speakers have mentioned a study about European Movement Ireland. Overall it is relatively positive. Some 82% still believe that Ireland's membership of the EU is important. That remains strong and it demonstrates that despite the challenges of our time, the vast majority of Irish people recognise the benefits of European engagement. Looking deeper into the figures, we need to ensure that we listen, learn and act on some of the sentiments coming through. Less than half of the respondents believe that the EU is moving in the right direction, with concerns about migration, EU regulation, and sovereignty. These are legitimate concerns and demand our attention. They remind us that the European project is not a static entity but a dynamic one that must continuously adapt and respond to the needs and anxieties of citizens. As a member of Fine Gael and of the European People's Party, I am proud to be European, but when we listen to those sentiments and concerns, we need to have a realistic debate and conversation about our defence and security and how we can co-operate with other member states. We also need to ensure that Europe is not only economically robust but also secure and capable of protecting its citizens and interests, while also looking at the likes of the cost of living, which is a top concern for us here at home, and migration and housing. I will bring it closer to home in relation to the need to inform and educate the next generation of citizens. The Minister of State recently visited my constituency where we went to Sacred Heart and Coláiste Choilm in Tullamore to share the insight and inform students of the importance of Europe. We cannot take that for granted. We need to see more of that and investment in it. As we move from being a net beneficiary to a net contributor in the European Union, we need to structure ourselves better to identify funds and allocations to continue on that pathway to support agriculture, infrastructure and foreign direct investment. I attended a public meeting in Tullamore last night about we move Offaly forward. We would resource an EU funding officer in local authorities to identify ways and means to maximise the effectiveness of those finances. We have made a lot of great progress in towns with the likes of the public realm, both with Government investment and European investment, and that needs to be continued. We also see the likes of just transition funding and what it has done. Just last week, I was at Ballycowan Castle where a new accessibility biking scheme was introduced to make the most of the Grand Canal greenway. This could not be done without European funding, and just because we are moving from being a beneficiary to a net contributor does not mean that should be lost. We have to identify ways to keep those channels open and keep those revenue streams coming to areas that need it most.

I compliment the Minister of State on his input into European affairs. I know he is dedicated and that he participates at all levels within the European Union. I commend him on the work he is doing. I know the value of the European Union, of the Single Market, and how valuable it is for Ireland to be a member of the European Union, but that does not mean that, in a debate like this, we cannot raise our concerns about Europe and the direction it is taking. From the beginning, Europe was about people. It was about the people whom we represent and the people who elect those in all other member states to represent them in the European Union. Irish people believe that is the way it should work. Democracy should work in that fashion, but it does not really, in the European Union. That is why I will call on the Minister of State to highlight the need to overhaul the bureaucratic structure in the European Union to make it far more transparent and usable, and to have far more emphasis in those structures on the people we represent. The Minister of State said the European Union is about us. We are European. We are the members, but sometimes it feels as if you are outside the door and that somebody else, other than those we elect to the European Parliament, are actually making those decisions. That approach can be seen by way of the various regulations, legislation or direction that is sent to us here in Ireland, to the Government, to transpose into Irish law. That happens regularly and we do not have sufficient input here to analyse what is actually going on, to raise our criticisms, and to raise suggestions to make things better, because it is done and dusted and we do not have a say. That is not democracy. That is simply bureaucratic structures imposing their desire to have the European Union go in a particular direction and not take into consideration consequences for its members. For example, the consequences of the financial crash were that we picked up the debt. Germany, France and Italy insisted on it, yet in Ireland, Jonathan Sugarman highlighted the fact that the Italian bank was bust. Did the Italian bank get sanctioned? No. Did Jonathan Sugarman get sanctioned? Yes. He is living a life that is far from perfect and ideal and was never recognised for the work he has done. We - Ireland and the Government in question - used Europe as a dumping ground; we sent stuff to Europe. For example, people such as Noel McGree, and Dan Brennan in my own constituency, raised an issue in the European Union and had it dealt with, but there has been almost no outcome, other than constant deliberation and nonsense to pretend that something is being dealt with when it is not. Julie Grace is another example of a whistleblower who went to Europe, aired her case and the European Union just turned a deaf ear. We in Ireland did the same thing. We provided the direction for these people to go to Europe in order that we would get them away somewhere else and we would not have to deal with them under the whistleblower legislation. I would like to see farmers and the farming community better recognised in the European Union. Take away the red tape and bureaucracy and start understanding that it is the farmers and those who live in the countryside who care for it. Then, make it easier for them to draw down whatever financial supports might be available so they can continue their work without having to fill out a huge number of forms and tick boxes and then be caught at times because they have either not ticked the box or have ticked the wrong box. Where is Europe in terms of leadership on the cost-of-living crisis we are going through? Where was it on insurance and banking? Why can we not access low interest rates, banking institutions and insurance? Why? I have not heard any of this raised in the European Union and I urge the representatives we have elected to do so.

This week, we mark Europe Day, a day to recognise the positive contributions the European Union has made to Ireland, to this region and on the world stage. We also need to apply a level of self-criticism to the work of the European Union because it has become painfully clear over the past number of years that the EU has shifted far from its core vision and values. Right now, the EU, in particular the European Commission, does not appear to be acting with respect for the collective position of EU citizens and elected Members of the European Parliament. Late last year, we saw widespread opposition to the ratification of the EU Mercosur trade deal by everybody, from farmers to environmentalists. A majority of MEPs voted to refer the Mercosur agreement to the European Court of Justice, yet the Commission chose to cast those concerns to the wind and press ahead to enact the trade deal. How does it look to our farming communities to have their concerns ridden over roughshod by the power of the European Commission? Our farmers and rural communities are feeling the pressure. They are struggling and they are frustrated that their concerns are not being taken on board. There is deep worry for the future. CAP funding is clearly under threat as the Commission seems more keen to increase the budget for arms and bombs than to continue to invest in our food security. If those billions were put into the agri sector instead, we could transform agriculture and our wider food sectors. We would be able to deliver a Common Agricultural Policy far greater than the limits of the current CAP, one that would rejuvenate farming and rural communities and deliver generational renewal. Our food products and those of other member states are among the highest quality in the world. The sky should be the limit for our agri sector. Instead, we see from the Commission a rush to outsource food production to South America and other countries. The majority of people on the island of Ireland would vote for Irish unity as part of the EU. This would hugely help with disease outbreaks in the farming sector, such as the bluetongue virus and bovine viral diarrhoea, BVD. Europe will play its part. We need a referendum because farming knows no boundaries. We have a great opportunity to hold talks during the EU Presidency, and I hope we will.

We move to the Social Democrats. Deputy Gibney is next. I note there are four Deputies due to speak. If the fourth Member does not arrive, we will divide the time by three.

I will message the Deputy.

He sometimes cuts it fine, so I hope he will be here shortly. I welcome the opportunity to make these statements to celebrate Europe Day because I am a proud European. It is important to remember and celebrate the very positive influence European Union membership had has on Irish society, as did, prior to European Union membership, co-operation with European member states post war and post conflict. I want to emphasise first that this is for me a really heartbreaking moment, whereby what started as a peace project in post-war Europe - the European Union was called something different then - to end and prevent conflict between European nations and to prevent wider global conflict is at a point where we are now approaching essentially a European defence union and the level of militarisation in the European Union - the Minister of State shakes his head at me and at other speakers-----

I do so because these are scare stories the Deputy is putting out there. They are totally false.

Allow the Deputy to have her time.

Excuse me. These are not scare stories.

It is misinformation and it scares people.

This is not misinformation or scare stories.

It is total misinformation.

Stop the clock, please. The Deputy must have her time. The Minister of State will have ten minutes to make closing remarks and he can address that then.

I have to stop this misinformation about the militarisation of the EU from Sinn Féin and the Social Democrats.

This is not the way to address that. There is a format to the-----

It is wrong to be frightening the people of Ireland in that way.

You are the one doing that.

The Minister of State is not listening.

It is wrong.

Then have a referendum about it.

The rules are the rules. You will have ten minutes to address the issues at the end of the debate. I ask Deputy to continue, please.

I am the people of Ireland and I am frightened by the level of militarisation the EU is pursuing. The fact that the multi-annual financial framework has pivoted towards rewarding arms manufacturers over small and medium businesses and that the countries that will benefit most from that are the largest countries in Europe that have those weapons industries is so far removed from the social cohesion and promotion of democracy this Union was started for. Of course, I am afraid and fearful, and it is absolutely right that we call it out. This Government's version of EU membership is to blindly follow that, to go with the EPP and Renew Europe groupings' vision of what this EU should be. Instead, we could be a vital voice. Ireland is one of only 27 members of this Union and we could be a vital voice, that same voice we heard in John Hume, one that talks about peace, solidarity, cohesion and democracy. I was at the launch of the European Movement Ireland survey yesterday. The values of the EU were captured in that survey as being democracy, equality, rule of law and human rights. It is my opinion that we have drifted far from those values in the pursuit of appeasing big business through deregulation across the EU and increased militarisation and military spending. If it upsets the Minister of State that I come into the Dáil Chamber and say that, then I am sorry but he will have to deal with it. I will touch on something I raised last week, which was dismissed as not being relevant to the post-European Council statements, even though there was a relevant post-European Council statement on this matter. It is the Irish attack on the European Convention on Human Rights. Only couple of years ago, the Government criticised the UK for its attack on the ECHR, yet only a few months ago, the Government joined in that attack. The European Convention on Human Rights has done nothing but bring good for all the states that signed up to it. This Government, along with others, is happy to start hacking away at it, in an attack on the separation of powers, which I think is just incredible, and judicial independence. It is politicising the entire process at a time when we have an active inter-state case based on the third article of the ECHR - we had two successful inter-state cases before that - and when we know the ECHR is what underpins the Good Friday Agreement and peace on this island. I asked the Minister of State about this last week and he dismissed it but I want to, again, be reassured of this Government's commitment to the ECHR and the European Court of Human Rights and that it will not pursue the Chișinău process and deviate from it.

The EU is built on partnerships and collaboration. It works because member states commit to pulling their weight, particularly on cross-border challenges like climate change. Climate change policy within the EU relies on the key principle of trust that every country will do its part. Today, we learned in The Irish Times that Ireland might be trying to buy its way out of delivery by funding renewable projects abroad rather than meeting targets at home. That is not partnership; that is avoidance. That avoidance will come at a cost to Irish households and the Irish environment. We cannot adopt an attitude where we deal with failure by paying someone else to cover it. Failure is dealt with by addressing and correcting it. Writing checks to send abroad will not save our environment. It will not put solar panels on roofs or help households cut their electricity bills. It will not protect them from energy shocks or increase their energy resilience. Ultimately, climate action is energy security action. Writing checks to send abroad will export opportunities. It will improve conditions abroad while ignoring the struggles of people at home. All this does is weaken trust in this Government, which is already fragile. People have been asked over the past decade or so to change their attitudes and how they travel, live and heat their homes all in the name of climate action, and people have done so. Those asks coming from the Government, however, are unfair if the Government is not willing to act with the same urgency it expects of everyone else. Climate action is not just a box-ticking exercise; it poses a real threat and it must be met with action on the ground in our communities. This Government cannot outsource that responsibility or our environment will pay the price.

Europe Day is a celebration of peace, solidarity and the shared values across our Continent. As someone who is proudly Irish, I am also proud to be European and part of a German family. Given the number of people who live in Ireland from elsewhere, it is important to celebrate our differences and what brings us together. I come from a proud bilingual family. We speak both German and English at home, and I am also learning Irish again. When a person speaks another language, they have a view into another culture, world and way to live. When many young people are learning different languages, not only are they learning how to communicate to buy something in the shop, or whatever else it is, they are seeing how other people live. Speaking another language allows people to understand a culture at a different level. They understand it in a way that cannot be achieved by just visiting and observing. They become part of the culture. Europe gives us the opportunity to do that. At a time in this world when there is such a focus on what makes us different, Europe has the potential to show us that although we are different, we have shared values. It gives us a way of examining what makes us different and similar. It allows us to reach out and ensure that the negativity that seems to be seeping across the world of difference is challenged. At this time of year, a lot of college students are getting ready to figure out what they are going to do in the summer. I am sure their parents are asking them what they are going to do. They might hope they get a job. Some of them will have the opportunity to travel. The interrailing initiative, DiscoverEU, gives many people the opportunity to do that. I would love to see that scheme expanded to more young people. It allows them to travel in a climate-friendly way. They interrail rather than take short-haul flights. Most European cities and countries have excellent networks of rail. We need to look at expanding the scheme to more young people because the more young people who travel to explore differences, learn new cultures and languages and see something different, not only will it give them pride in themselves but also pride in being a part of Europe. I would love to see more young people going abroad to study. There are such excellent schemes. Studying abroad allows them to be able to learn in a different education system and experience different work ethics and way of working. There is so much we can learn from one another in Europe. At a time when many differences are being highlighted, I want us to hold onto that in our country.

Europe Day is an important day for us to reflect on what Europe means to us and what we mean to Europe. It also allows us to apply a lens to the current issues of the day. I will speak to that first. Ultimately, at its heart, Europe is a peace process. For many hundreds of years, a kind of toxic nationalism existed in Europe. While that toxic nationalism is certainly been diluted as a result of the European Union project, we should never take it for granted. In some ways, we took the peace of the Good Friday Agreement for granted prior to the Brexit referendum. We saw how quickly some of those tensions could arise again. The idea that peace and mutual co-operation in Europe is a given is something we should be fearful of. We have to be careful of any one country asserting its nationalism above others. The European Union gives us the structure to do that. At its very heart, the European Union is a model to perpetuate peace. It is also a model of ensuring that national governments step up to the plate when there is a common European norm. With issues such as gender rights and climate policy, we have seen how Europe has challenged Ireland over many years to go further than perhaps national governments would have. The third leg of that stool is economic prosperity. At different times over our history with Europe, Europe has contributed to our economic prosperity and growth. It has challenged us at times as well. The post-crash period was incredibly challenging for many European Union countries. We cannot forget that this is about those three stools - peace, the idea of stretching beyond national horizons to adopt a pan-European policy on big issues like climate and economic growth. With any peace process, there must be parity of esteem. We have to recognise that there are other European Union countries with different views. There are democracies in each European member state. One of the great tragedies for me is that while we have been able to respond almost with unanimity on the issue of Ukraine, we have not been able to do so on the issue of Palestine. I have to accept that, in a democracy, people will come to the table with different views. While I fundamentally disagree with the approach of many of the European Union governments on the issue of Palestine, our interaction with Israel and so on, I have to accept that there is that difference within a union. Sometimes, people in this House speak about the European Union as if what happens here in Dublin happens everywhere in the European Union or that the views expressed here in Dublin are expressed everywhere in the European Union. We have to accept that, in a partnership, other people may have different views and priorities. We must work within that framework. There is no doubt that the current crisis with regard to the cost of oil and petrol is having a real impact on people’s lives. We need to have an approach similar to the way the European Union excelled in the delivery and procurement of the Covid vaccine. The AccelerateEU programme will be at the centre of the EU Presidency for Ireland. We need to ensure that the changes we make will have a practical impact on people’s lives. We have talked about solar. The big difficulty with the transition from, let us say, gas heating in a home to something like a heat pump is that people are relying on the expense of electricity. There is no easy technology transfer from a traditional gas boiler over to a full retrofit installation with a heat pump. We need to find new technologies to do that. That is an area where the European Union could lead the way. We can do more in the area of solar energy as well. It can help subsidise those electricity-consuming heating systems in homes. There is a lot of talk in this House about plug-in solar but we have to ensure that we get the safety, electricity and regulation right. We can do more in this regard. With the better energy warmer homes scheme for those on fuel supplement, we can do far more in terms of solar nationally. All that can be done better by working together in Europe.

Ireland has benefited enormously from our membership of the European Union. From the huge value of structural funds to the attraction for American multinationals of having an English-speaking base in the EU, Ireland has been transformed for the better by this membership. This has led to a standard of living our grandparents could never have imagined, not only economically but also culturally, socially and educationally. Witness the enormous success of the Erasmus programme. I will refer to the huge positives I have experienced personally in Europe. As a young man, I lived for a number of years in the 1980s on mainland Europe in France, Germany and Switzerland. I experienced the extraordinary culture and history of many European countries. In Switzerland, I lived in St. Gallen, a city founded by the Irish monk St. Gall, after whom the city is called. Ireland has contributed enormously to the common European culture, heritage and values that go back a very long way. We were known as the island of saints and scholars. St. Columban and other monks founded monasteries all over Europe. One of the founders of the European Union, the French statesman Robert Schuman, in 1950 described St. Columban as the patron saint of all those who wish to build a united Europe. I lived in Hanover in what was then West Germany during the Cold War. Nearby was the so-called German Democratic Republic, more accurately called East Germany. I crossed over the Iron Curtain, as it was called then, a number of times and visited the totalitarian states on the other side. I shared an apartment with a young man who was caught trying to escape over the Berlin Wall only to be caught and imprisoned for a year and then allowed to leave. This division ended in 1990 and eastern Europe was freed but today that freedom is under serious threat. Vladimir Putin, who lived in Dresden in East Germany in the 1980s, wants to recreate that totalitarian world. The evidence is there. This can only be stopped by European countries being prepared to defend themselves. If this does not happen, our way of life may disappear. It is especially important that Germany, always the political and strategic focal point of Europe, builds its defence capability. This is not anything like the 1930s. This is Germany using its economic strength to defend European values and deter an aggressor. There was a phrase used in Europe called "realpolitik". The realpolitik of today is that Europe is under threat and it must be prepared to defend itself. With Ireland holding the EU Presidency shortly, we need to stamp our mark on European policy. For me, the stand out one is to push for implementation of the Draghi report, which addresses the European Union's lagging productivity and economic growth relative to the US and China. As the most successful economy in the European Union, we are well placed to push for the implementation of the Draghi report. Europe is lagging behind and has become enormously dependent on the US. We rely on Amazon and Microsoft for cloud services. We have very few at the forefront of AI. While regulation may be justified on a one-by-one basis, taken together it has stopped business development and has made us dependent on the US. We must look to implement the Draghi report. Ireland has a proud European history and we are European but we have a unique perspective in Europe and we have a unique link to the US. We should use these factors to foster continued prosperity in Europe.

This week we mark Europe Day. The European Union likes to present itself as a peace project founded off the back of two World Wars in quick succession and built on the promise that never again would Europe stand by while genocide unfolded. It talks about multilateralism, co-operation, solidarity and international law - all the right words but those words ring hollow because when it matters most and when people are being slaughtered the European Union has not led; it has failed. The peace project is taking a battering. What we continue to see in Gaza, Lebanon and Iran has shattered any claims the EU has moral leadership on the world stage. In Ukraine, the EU has no plan for peace only a plan for the unlimited supply of arms and weapons that continue to slaughter innocent people, both Ukrainian and Russian. Ordinary people can see it and they are not fooled. They see a Union that lectures about human rights while turning a blind eye to genocide, or worse enabling it, when it suits. Member states continue to trade with Israel, supply arms, and give political cover and silence where there should be disgust and outrage. Ordinary people wonder why Palestinians, Lebanese and Iranian schoolgirls should be forced to pay with their lives for the crimes of the Weimar Republic 80 years later. Yet there are those, led by our Taoiseach, Deputy Micheál Martin, who want Ireland to cosy up to EU warmongers, who obsequiously agree that increased militarisation is the only way forward for Europe, who want more alignment for Ireland with military blocs, and who think we should abandon neutrality, fall into line and succumb to the war machine. The truth is that Ireland could close all its hospitals, all its schools, all its universities and pour every penny into the bloated pockets of weapon manufacturers and still we would not be able to defend ourselves from any threat, real or otherwise. International law is the only protection small countries like Ireland have and we have a unique opportunity with the EU Presidency. We can choose to go along with the hypocrisy or we can challenge it. We can stand up for what the EU was supposed to be about, peace, co-operation and solidarity, by demonstrating that international order must be upheld and international law implemented. That means looking to the future as well for our Presidency because a place where the EU did play a positive role in supporting peace was on our island. I am sure the Minister of State was pleased to note the Amárach Research poll yesterday showing the growing majority, North and South, in favour of a united Ireland within the European Union. Now is the time for this Government to get on with that preparation. Now is the time for this conversation. The demand for unity is growing stronger and louder every day and it is beyond time for the political leadership in Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael to catch up with where the people of Ireland are, North and South. A united Ireland is not a far-off dream for another generation to deliver. We must have the courage to reach for it now during our Presidency, and do the work so we can finally make the dream come true. Anois an t-am don aontacht.

The Minister of State, Deputy Thomas Byrne, lauded the European Union as being a place of values. He talked about its commitment to international law and to the rule of law and was somewhat aghast that people suggested Europe was guilty of a move towards militarisation. I put it to the Minister of State, Deputy Richmond, that if he was to characterise the major value of the European Union currently, it is precisely that it is the biggest contributor to a massive increase in global arms expenditure, which is now up to €2,887 billion, which is €2.8 trillion. The biggest contributor to that increase, with a 14% increase last year, is the European Union. That should hardly surprise us because Ursula von der Leyen, a former arms seller when she was a minister in Germany, selling arms to all and sundry, has argued for the rearmament of Europe and for massive increases in European expenditure on weapons. This is what Europe is actually doing. By the way, it spends four times more on weapons than Russia. Then add to this the trillion dollars the United States spends. Clearly, militarisation and spending money on weapons does not do anything to deter war. That is very clear when we look at the balance of global arms expenditure. Where this notion of commitments to international law or any kind of values is exposed as complete nonsense is when we look at the European Union's relationship with the State of Israel and at the crimes Israel is committing. Even before the genocidal assault on Gaza, Israel had shown itself to be the world's number one enemy of international law. It refuses to sign the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty but we all know it has about 200 nuclear weapons. Israel does not think that law applies to it. Trump thinks it is okay to bomb Iran, as does Israel does, because Iran might have nuclear weapons but Israel will not even sign the international treaty to restrict their use. Since 1948 when it ethnically cleansed nearly 1 million Palestinians, Israel has denied under international law the right to return that Palestinians have, leaving millions of Palestinians displaced all over the Middle East. It has a law explicitly denying the Palestinians the right self determination and has granted that right only to people of the Jewish faith. It presides over an apartheid regime, according to every serious human rights organisation, and since 2016, it has been collectively punishing the two million people of Gaza with a criminal siege. Then we had the genocidal massacre of the past few years. Who provides the weapons? The European Union and, to a very significant extent, Germany. As we speak I have just had a message from Mimi Tatlow-Golden. Her son, an Irish citizen, was with four other people protesting against Elbit Systems, the major provider of weapons to Israel to commit genocide against the Palestinians, in what was an act of civil disobedience where there was no threat of violence to anybody. His mother was saying that in the court at the moment the judge is likening them to terrorists and organised criminals, and really setting them up as horrible, dangerous people. This makes it very worrying about their treatment. The family appeals again to the Irish Government to send monitors to the trial, which is an absolute travesty of justice. The European Union is showing complete moral bankruptcy in the face of genocide, the worst crime it is possible to commit. Next week, the Sanctions against the State of Israel Bill will come before the Dáil. It states that because Ireland is a signatory to the Genocide Convention, it has a legal obligation not just to punish the crime of genocide, but to prevent it, and to use all reasonable means to do so. The Bill calls for across-the board-economic sanctions. Will the Government support the Bill next week when it comes before the House? I very much doubt it.

I have participated in a lot of Europe Day debates. In fact, the first time I ever spoke in the Dáil was before I was a TD when as an MEP I was invited to address the House on Europe Day. Of all the set piece annual debates we have, this is the most sickening. Every time we get the same platitudes trotted out about Europe being a peace project and the European Union being a defender of democracy and being founded on the basis of fundamental rights. This bears no resemblance to the actually existing European Union. In particular, in terms of the biggest crime that is happening now in the world, namely, the genocide that been going on in Palestine for more than two years and the EU's role in that. We are all expected to just ignore that. We heard earlier from Deputy McAuliffe that he would prefer if the European Union really did something about the genocide but, at the same time, he accepts that, well, that is it and different people have different opinions and so on. Do not try to claim that it is a peace project if it is involved in supporting, facilitating and arming genocide. Let us drop the pretence that it is a peace project when it has a strategy called ReArm Europe and when it is, as Deputy Boyd Barrett outlined, a driving factor in the process of militarisation, which the Minister of State, Deputy Byrne, tried to deny by suggesting it is somehow not true. It is there in black and white. He can go and read their strategy documents. He can look at the figures in terms of the extra amounts spent. Let us not hear talk about the European Union being a bastion of democracy when the most powerful, dominant state in the Union, Germany, right now is treating people, including an Irish citizen, Daniel Tatlow-Devally, as a terrorist for an act of civil disobedience. It is treating people as terrorists for honourable, legal acts of civil disobedience trying to prevent the continued commission of genocide. The speaking of Irish is banned by the German state at Palestine protests. Let us not hear about fundamental rights when the Fortress Europe project is responsible for the deaths of thousands of people in the Mediterranean Sea every single year. It is an absolute joke and, of course, there is no greater illustration of this gap between the rhetoric we hear once a year or more often, unfortunately, and the reality of the situation in Gaza. We are two and a half years into an accelerated genocide carried out by Israel against the Palestinians. There is a so-called ceasefire now, but people in Gaza are being murdered every single day. Documented killings in Gaza now stand at over 72,000 people, with 21,000 children, which is the highest percentage death toll of children in any war. UNICEF has said that tens of thousands of babies born in Gaza since the start of the war have been delivered into hell. As of February last year, 25,000 wounded children had no surviving family. The reality is going to be worse than all of those nightmarish figures when the truth comes out. Israel has resumed its slaughter of civilians in Lebanon. It is breaking its ceasefire there on a daily basis too. What is the European Union doing about any of that? Nothing. Nothing to sanction the State of Israel. Let us compare that to how swiftly sanctions were imposed on Russia after its illegal invasion of Ukraine, proving that it can do it, but instead it has spectated while the genocide has continued. It has looked on as European countries are some of the biggest, after the US, deliverers of weapons to Israel and it has treated Israel as a favoured nation in terms of trade, effectively equivalent to as if it was in the European Union. The Government has delayed and refused to act on the occupied territories Bill. Why? Cowardice and a calculated decision to prioritise financial ties with Israel and the US over human life. That is why we are moving our Bill next week for comprehensive sanctions on the State of Israel. Why? Because of genocide, apartheid and crimes against humanity. It is time for this State to act. The Government knows that public opinion is strongly in favour of that. Will it ignore that as well as the genocide or will it finally take meaningful action? Will it allow a conscience vote on our Bill? If the Government can have a conscience vote on the issue of abortion, why can it not have one on the issue of genocide?

Today we mark Europe Day 2026. It is a chance to reflect on how far Europe has come and what Europe stands for, namely, peace, working together, democracy and opportunity. For Ireland, being part of the European Union has made a real difference. It has helped grow our economy. It has supported our communities and has backed our farmers. We have seen that clearly in County Laois and across the midlands. I know people at home will often say that Europe can be heavy on rules and that there is too much red tape at times, and, yes, some of this criticism is very fair. However, taken as a whole, Ireland's membership of the European Union has been overwhelmingly positive. Ireland makes a significant net contribution to the EU budget. That is a fact but we do get strong investment and real value in return in our communities, infrastructure and economy. From farming to small businesses and from roads and infrastructure to education, Europe has brought real benefits to areas that were once left behind. As we prepare for Ireland's Presidency of the European Union, we have a real opportunity. We must make sure that regional Ireland, including the midlands, is front and centre. Ireland's Presidency cannot just be about meetings in Brussels. It has to be about delivering to our towns, businesses and farming families. For a county like Laois, I see three clear priorities, namely, enterprise, industry and agriculture. Regarding enterprise, the midlands has huge potential. We have good connections, a strong workforce and a real sense of enterprise. We should use our Presidency to push for better support for all small businesses, easier access to finance and more investment outside the big cities. The midlands can lead the way in balanced regional development. The second priority is industry. The move to a low-carbon economy has to be fair. The midlands has already gone through major change. New jobs and investments must come to towns and rural areas and not just cities. We need the support for infrastructure, energy, training and new industries. There is great potential for the midlands in renewable energy, manufacturing and logistics. We need proper backing to make all this happen. The third priority must be agriculture. Farming shows the value of Europe to Ireland. The CAP has supported rural communities for years, but farmers are under real pressure now. As President of the EU, Ireland must stand up for food producers. We need practical, working policies that support farm incomes and recognise the laws that farmers are already using. Farmers in Laois want to play their part on climate and sustainability but they need fairness and certainty. Europe Day is about people. It is about giving the next generation in counties like Laois the chance to live, work and raise a family in their own communities. Ireland's Presidency is a chance to make the case that regional Ireland and rural communities matter and that places like Laois and the midlands must be at the heart of Europe's future.

Europe has worked as a peace project. We all know Europe was incredibly facilitatory and really useful in our own peace process. The solidarity we were shown during the lunacy of the Brexit process was a necessity. I assume it also shows the power of the Single Market, even when it came to those from Germany or France who wanted to sell into Britain. However, we cannot say there are not issues in relation to the European Union and how it is constituted at this point in time. We all understand that we are in a very changed geopolitical set-up from a couple of years ago but the European Union is meant to have credibility. It is meant to have credibility in the wider world, particularly when it talks about international law and the rights of supporting the Ukrainians in the context of the illegal invasion by Russia of Ukraine. I will take one headline from the RTÉ app, which reads: "Call for EU to deter Israel from building in West Bank". The article states: "Nearly 450 former EU ministers, ambassadors and senior officials have called on member states and EU institutions to take action deterring Israel from constructing a controversial Jewish settlement in the occupied West Bank which, say critics, would separate East Jerusalem from the main Palestinian population centres." We all understand the genocide that was carried out in Gaza and a ceasefire that is not really a ceasefire. We have seen the attacks by Israel in Lebanon. We have seen how it has dragged the United States into absolute madness as regards the attacks on Iran. I am not entirely sure how they manipulated Donald Trump into it. Everybody out there who is paying huge fuel rates knows they are paying for that. The fact is that we have these sorts of actions by those who are ensconced within the European project at the same time we have member states, particularly Germany, selling arms to Israel and the continuity of the EU-Israel Association Agreement. It is sickening to anyone not only that trade with Israel remains, but the fact that they are giving such beneficial agreements to themselves. It is utterly wrong. I reiterate that we need to take the actions we can and that means implementing the occupied territories Bill for goods and services. It is fair enough to say that people would like to see the Irish Government put pressure on the FAI and that we would not see the Irish team playing Israel as it continues with its genocide, lunacy and madness. The European Union has to stand up for something more than it is.

Bhí mé ag éisteacht le gach duine agus mé i m’oifig ansin. Aontaím le go leor rudaí ráite, go háirithe faoin gcaidreamh idir an tAontas Eorpach agus Iosrael. I mentioned it earlier in the House. Níl sé maith go leor nach bhfuilimid ag déanamh ár ndícheall le haghaidh sanctions agus the OTB. I welcome that the Minister said that she has consulted with the Attorney General. I urge that this be done urgently. Europe Day is a moment to reflect not just on what the European Union is, but what it can be. I welcome Deputy Ó Murchú's acknowledgement of how the EU did help with peace and how it will hopefully continue in the future. We have benefited enormously. I have been speaking to some of my senior constituents about times gone by and how times were a lot different. We have better infrastructure and better economic development. One of the things I would love us to take from some of our EU counterparts and the UK, which have left the EU, is their energy policies on private wires and plug-in solar. The EU should make it easier for member states to roll out these systems. Ireland knows better than most that targets are being set relating to strategies, working groups and clearing houses. We are continuously discussing this at the Joint Committee on Climate, Environment and Energy. Action is what we need. We are generating enough renewable energy and it is being turned off. Many studies show that the use of battery energy storage systems, BESS, gravity storage and any long duration energy storage, in conjunction with private wires or the national grid, if it is being done fast enough, will help the Irish people. We need to be serious about energy independence because otherwise, our Government can be dictated to by foreign wars as it is at the moment. We saw a 23% rise in the cost of liquefied natural gas, LNG, in 24 hours. For energy security reasons, the Government is considering an LNG terminal. For energy security reasons, we need to decentralise our grid and have the alternative solutions in place. People should be allowed to have plug-in solar battery systems rolled out faster. Air-to-air heat pumps should be allowed. Solar meitheal projects should be brought in across social housing and we should benefit our country with what we already generate from offshore renewable energy. It is ridiculous that we cannot invest in ports at the moment. There was a loophole where we got €90 million into the Port of Cork. Currently, one of the only alternatives to Cork that can build these giant structures for offshore renewable energy, ORE, is Belfast. We need to have the guidance of the EU and our European counterparts in Norway who rolled out the system and have a more energy independent state. If we can reduce energy costs and grid capacity, we will help the Irish people and reach our climate targets or close to them. The solutions are available today and they are used across the EU. This will reduce electricity bills. I also hear talk about nuclear power. Look at the UK and what happened with Hinkley Point C. The UK has a lot more resources than our State. When I was doing engineering, we did a small module on nuclear energy and we learned about the basic workings of it. We do not have the mechanics or nuclear physicists in our country, so we will have to externally source them. To bring the economics of the UK comparably to a decentralised, more renewable-focused grid, Ireland would be better positioned now than if we go down the nuclear route. I am not completely against nuclear. I understand the efficiencies but as a short-term effect, it is not ideal. As a long-term solution down the road, when small modular reactor systems get more developed and are used at a higher rate, we will possibly have a cheaper option. Hinkley Point was approved in 2016. The estimated cost was £18 billion. The latest estimated cost is £31 billion to £34 billion, and it is at the higher point now. It is actually even higher when we take into account inflation. That is the UK Government. We have seen how some of the State contracts have gone overboard here with small projects. Think of a nuclear power plant and any small change that can happen. Hinkley Point was originally expected to be functional by 2025 and it is now expected to be closer to 2031. If we are serious about benefiting and being a leader in the EU, we need to benefit the Irish people with our offshore renewable energy, including wind.