Post European Council Meeting: Statements

I welcome the students of Nagle Community College to the Gallery. They are led by the school's principal, Nicholas O'Keeffe, and the son of the Chief Whip, Mary Butler, Jack Butler, who teaches there. All of the students are very welcome to Dáil Éireann. The meeting of the European Council on 15 and 16 October was the first to take place during Ireland's Presidency term. It was a long meeting with a very full agenda, with leaders having discussions on a number of key Presidency policy priorities. The priorities included competitiveness, the next multi-annual financial framework, Ukraine and enlargement. Other items on the agenda included migration, European security and defence and, of course, the Middle East. I will set out the main results of the European Council meeting on competitiveness, the multi-annual financial framework, Ukraine and the Middle East. The Minister of State, Deputy Thomas Byrne, will speak later to the other issues. Leaders reviewed ongoing work to strengthen the competitiveness of the European economy against the backdrop of increased geopolitical uncertainty. I briefed colleagues on the considerable progress being made by the Irish Presidency on the implementation of the One Europe, One Market roadmap, which is the blueprint for European competitiveness, building on the Draghi and Letta reports. The targets set out in the roadmap were jointly agreed by the European Union’s three institutions, the European Parliament, the Council and the European Commission. As the current holder of the Presidency of the Council, Ireland is doing all we can to meet the goals agreed in the roadmap. In this context, the European Council had a useful exchange with President Metsola of the European Parliament on the importance of continued constructive engagement by the European Parliament to advance negotiations with the Council on key files in line with the ambitious timelines in the roadmap. I also took the opportunity to highlight specific priority files where an extra political push is required. This includes finding the right balance on the Industrial Accelerator Act, where compromise will be required to reach political agreement this year. On European Union Inc., our political exchanges at this European Council set the path for the Council negotiating mandate secured by the Irish Presidency on 23 October, with significant progress there. This is a measure that will make a real and practical difference to Europe’s start-up and scale-up potential. It represents a significant milestone for the Irish Presidency, and I thank our hard-working teams in Brussels and Dublin for their efforts in securing this result. As holders of the Presidency, we look forward to early progress in the European Parliament so that we can advance negotiations to conclude the file. On foot of the leaders’ exchanges, we also secured agreement on an important package of measures to simplify European Union digital regulation. We now have agreement on three of the four omnibus simplification packages we are aiming to conclude this year. The discussions among leaders also helped advance the European Union’s savings and investment union. The Irish Presidency has reached an important agreement with the European Parliament on measures to revive and simplify the European Union’s securitisation market. At the ECOFIN Council in October, the member states reached a political agreement on the market integration and supervision package. I pay tribute to the Tánaiste and his team for their hard work in delivering this important agreement. These key elements of the savings and investments union, or the securing a capital markets union, will help to create a truly single market for capital, including stronger financing for fast-growing young firms at the technological frontier. Our October meeting also included important political exchanges on the review of the emissions trade system, ETS, which will inform the ongoing work towards achieving political agreement on this difficult package at the Environment Council in December. Energy was a key focus of discussion in the broader competitiveness context and leaders underlined the critical importance of tackling high energy prices. We discussed the impact of the current geopolitical context on global supply chains, energy security and prices, including the effects on citizens, in particular the most vulnerable, industry and the wider economy. We underlined the urgent need for a co-ordinated European response, with targeted and temporary measures that reflect the specific circumstances of member states and safeguard the Single Market. The Commission’s proposal to postpone the methane regulation was welcomed in that regard. Alongside immediate measures to protect households and industry, we reaffirmed that accelerating the transition to clean, homegrown energy is the most effective way to strengthen Europe’s energy security and structurally lower energy prices. Our discussion on global macroeconomic imbalances at the European Council underlined that China’s economic model is presenting significant challenges for Europe, including de-industrialisation. Leaders welcomed the progress made by Commissioner Šefčovič during the recent European Union-China trade and investment consultations in Beijing, including agreement by China on an approach to significantly moderate exports of hybrid vehicles and on ways to improve market access for European exports. It is important to acknowledge that these agreements reached with China represent the first step towards achieving rebalanced trade between China and the European Union. In parallel with the ongoing dialogue with China, there was broad support for recent Franco-German proposals that advocated swifter use of existing trade defence tools and the development of new ones to rectify structural imbalances in trade. The importance of unity on this issue cannot be overstated, and we should proceed in a manner that ensures that the European Union remains a strong, innovative economy that is competitive and open to investment, and an advocate for free and fair trade. At the October European Council, I presented the Irish Presidency’s revised negotiating box on the 2028-2034 multi-annual financial framework, in other words the budget for Europe for the next seven years. This meeting marked a significant milestone and achievement by our Presidency, the delivery of a robust compromise proposal on the future European Union budget. In sharing our rationale and approach, I made clear to European Union leaders that the objective of our revision was to present a modernised and flexible budget that invests in new and emerging priorities on the one hand, while at the same time protecting treaty-based policies such as the Common Agricultural Policy, CAP. The proposal also reflects the fiscal realities that all member states face. The Irish Presidency proposal reflects an ambitious budget of €1.62 trillion, a 30% increase on the current multi-annual financial framework. Our proposal remains future-oriented, with a strong focus on competitiveness, research and innovation while reflecting a greater focus on security and defence in the context of a more uncertain world. It proposes a package of European competitiveness funds totalling more than €400 billion and the competitiveness heading overall has more than doubled compared with the current multi-annual financial framework. We have also responded to the calls of a very large number of member states that want to see national envelopes under heading 1, Cohesion and the Common Agricultural Policy, protected as part of that positive, future-focused agenda. These are valued, impactful and proven policies that can continue to support and develop our regions, our rural communities and our farmers into the future. We have also sought to ensure flexibility within national envelopes in how member states allocate this European Union funding. We have protected support for recovery and reconstruction funds for Ukraine and also humanitarian assistance for the most vulnerable. We approached our task with an open mind and not with any fixed agenda. We also listened to those member states that contribute most to the budget that the previous proposal was simply too large for our current fiscal circumstances. That is not something that can be lightly set aside if we are to reach agreement. That is why we reduced the overall volume by about 8%, or €141 billion, compared with the Commission’s proposal. That should not distract us from the very real increases that are being made when compared with the current MFF. This Irish proposal is for a budget that is 30% above our current MFF and almost every programme receives an increase in our negotiating box when compared with the current situation. The revision seeks to bridge the differences between member states on volume, long-term spending priorities and how the European Union will generate its revenue. As is the nature of difficult budget negotiations, our negotiating box was never going to please everyone. However, it has been broadly welcomed by leaders as an important step in the right direction. I am confident that it has advanced discussions further on the path to agreement before the end of the year. I am particularly keen that we get agreement. It now falls to President Costa to take these negotiations forward. The Irish Presidency remains at his service to assist with this complex and challenging task. Russia’s illegal war in Ukraine is deadlier for civilians today than at any point since the start of the full-scale invasion. By August 2026, more civilians were killed and injured in Ukraine than during the whole of 2025. At the European Council, leaders reaffirmed our steadfast support for Ukraine. President Zelenskyy gave an overview of the situation on the ground in Ukraine. We maintained our call for a ceasefire and for Russia to cease its aggression and engage in meaningful negotiations. We strongly condemned Russia for deliberately targeting Ukraine’s civilian, energy and transport infrastructure, healthcare and education facilities. Despite all peace efforts, Russia has repeatedly shown it is intent on escalating rather than de-escalating the conflict. The Black Sea corridor remains blocked as Russian strikes target commercial shipping and weaponises food and global food security. Russia is a direct threat to the global security order beyond Ukraine, repeatedly violating member states’ airspace and territorial waters. Ireland is committed to ensuring Ukraine receives the support it needs to resist Russian aggression, to strengthening pressure on Russia through European Union sanctions and to advancing Ukraine’s pathway to European Union membership. The European Union’s robust targeted sanctions in response to Russia’s war of aggression are impacting on the Russian economy, making it harder to access battlefield foods and to pay for war. Leaders also reaffirmed the European Union’s determination to take forward further measures to raise the costs to Russia, including by targeting the shadow fleet and its enablers. Ireland is working to ensure that Ukraine has access to the finance it needs to defend itself against Russia’s aggression. As a Presidency, we have facilitated the disbursement of the instalments of the European Union’s €90 billion support loan for Ukraine. However, Ukraine still has significant financing needs for 2027, potentially in the region of €70 billion. This is a direct result of Russia’s continuing and escalating aggression. The European Union and its member states will need to rise to this challenge. Leaders will return to this issue at a special meeting of the European Council in late November. As part of the enlargement process, Ireland launched negotiations on clusters 2, 3, and 6 for Ukraine, in addition to the launch of cluster 1 earlier in the year. We are working to achieve the opening of the remaining two clusters and hope that this can achieved before the end of our Presidency. Moldova is also feeling the impact of Russia’s war of aggression and its threat to the security of the entire region. The people of Moldova are suffering daily from Russia’s hybrid activity. It is therefore important that the European Union also works to advance Moldova’s path towards European Union membership. The European Council leaders welcomed progress made on its accession negotiations, with the opening of four of six negotiating clusters to date. The opening of all clusters is a priority of our Presidency. The European Council expressed its grave concern about the deterioration in the security situation across the Middle East and the continuing military escalation in the region. We agreed on the importance of all actors avoiding further escalation. Dialogue and diplomacy remain the only viable path forward. Maritime security was a particular focus. Freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz and the Red Sea is vital for global trade and energy security. We also reiterated that Iran must never be allowed to acquire a nuclear weapon. The Council clearly condemned human rights violations in Iran and the European Union must continue to take measures targeting those responsible for these violations. On Yemen, Ireland joined the Council in strongly condemning continued Houthi military escalation, including attacks against Saudi Arabia, including civilian infrastructure, and repeated attacks on civilian shipping. Leaders discussed the deteriorating situation in Gaza and the West Bank, and again called on Israel to allow immediate, unimpeded access and sustained distribution of humanitarian assistance at scale into and throughout Gaza. We reiterated the European Union’s commitment to the two-state solution. Indeed, a key focus of Ireland’s Presidency of the Council is to reaffirm the European Union’s commitment to a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in the Middle East based on a two-state solution that guarantees the right of both Israeli and Palestinians to self-determination and to live in peace and safety within secure borders. We are now at the fifth month into Ireland’s Presidency term. The October European Council meeting marked both a significant milestone with the presentation of the Irish negotiating box and a significant opportunity for progressing our other Presidency priorities. I look forward to welcoming my fellow European Union leaders to Dublin next week for an informal meeting of the European Council. This will be preceded by the European Political Community summit the day before, which will be the largest meeting of international leaders ever hosted in Ireland. I look forward to updating the House on these events and future meetings of the European Council, and on the results of the Irish Presidency as we head into the most intense and pivotal phase of our term in office.

In the first instance and before I go into the substance of it, it is important to acknowledge that during the course of the Presidency many members of staff in the Department of foreign affairs spent a considerable amount of time organising it. We must pay tribute to the enormous initiative of those people and acknowledge that. I will begin with Palestine. I just left a meeting with Francesca Albanese, who met the foreign affairs committee yesterday, informally. She will appear before the European Union affairs committee today. The statement the Taoiseach made acknowledges it, but a great deal more is needed. The situation in Palestine remains profoundly serious both in a humanitarian and political sense. Depressingly, the recent Israeli election shows that while there are differences in policies, ultimately, both the Israeli Government and opposition are dedicated to expanding settlements and undermining the pathway to a sovereign and independent Palestinian state. That needs to remain our position. Clearly it is, but it is the way that the politics of Israel remain focused on undermining that. There is a great deal more that this State can do. There is more Europe can do. The continued existence of the EU-Israel Association Agreement is a stain on the reputation of the EU. The idea that the human rights clause could not have been invoked, dozens and perhaps hundreds of times in recent years, is absurd. The Irish Government is also at fault. It is appalling that so many licences were given for dual-use items that went on to go directly to the IDF during the height of the genocide. Products produced here in Ireland were effectively going on to assist the genocidal policies of the Israeli Government. It is shameful and wrong. Questions remain as to how that sign-off would have been given. In relation to the Middle East, I echo what the Taoiseach has said about human rights abuses with Iran. I have never felt that there is any contradiction between condemning an illegal war in Iran and the chaos that is caused in that region. It is very clear that there are human rights violations. There were executions of protestors in recent days. It must go on the record again that it is a repressive and ruthless government. Nonetheless, the war that was encouraged by the Israeli Government and supported by President Trump has caused chaos in the region. There is no disputing that. At the time, I and many others said that ultimately American workers and families would pay the price for the attacks on Iran through the impact on the cost of living. That is clearly seen in the elections yesterday. It has caused chaos throughout the world. It is important to state that we will watch in the coming days the response from the US Administration. I hope that it will not see a further escalation. I will touch on the issues in Sudan. It is too often neglected, both in these Houses and internationally. It has been a bit longer than a year since the massacre at El Fasher, with some of the worst scenes of violence that we have seen in this century. The numbers who were killed in that slaughter are not yet fully known, even at this stage, but it was certainly over 20,000 and hundreds of thousands of people were displaced. It is the most appalling humanitarian situation in the world. In this area, we have leverage and things we can do. A candidate from the United Arab Emirates is putting themselves forward for Secretary-General of the United Nations. The Irish Government must rule out support for Lana Nusseibeh. There has to be a price paid for the United Arab Emirates' complicity in the appalling slaughter we have seen. She has been part of the Emirati cover for the ongoing supply of drones, weaponry and other support for the RSF, which is responsible for these slaughters. The Government has the option of stating it will not support that candidacy and it must do so. I again condemn recent attacks on civilians in Ukraine by Vladimir Putin. It is clear the statements he is making are paying lip service to negotiations and he is not interested at this point in meaningful negotiations. Sanctions need to continue to be part of it. I have raised time and again with the Taoiseach and the Minister the need for Ireland to raise its voice. The Taoiseach referenced the energy situation. Russia continues to have significant influence because of its grasp on energy. Ireland could put forward sanctions in relation to Rosatom, the Russian atomic agency. That is a clear demand of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Ireland should be more vocal in supporting that.

Another European Council meeting has taken place that signally fails to grasp the geopolitical realities facing the world. While Iran is rightly criticised for its attacks in the region, the conclusions of the European Council read as though it simply launched spontaneous attacks on its neighbours. Nowhere in the conclusions is the United States or Israel criticised for starting a war that has worsened an already critical cost-of-living crisis in Ireland and across the EU. Why are we so afraid to call out the United States for its warmongering? Why does it have carte blanche to destabilise entire regions, sit back and point the finger at those it attacked? If we are too cowardly to assign blame where it belongs, how can we be surprised when the US and Israel do the same thing over and over? It is cowardly. The Iranian regime is not to be defended but if we are to have a serious conversation about peace in the Middle East, it was US and Israeli warplanes that dropped bombs on 28 February this year. That is why the Strait of Hormuz closed and why a tank of diesel suddenly costs €30 or €40 more. Now that the US Republican Party has been embarrassed in the mid-term elections, the world is holding its breath for Donald Trump's reaction. It is an irrational actor we are dealing with and we are too afraid to call it for what it is. The conclusions on Gaza similarly fail to grasp the severity of the situation. We are still urging Israel to allow humanitarian aid to reach the Palestinian people unimpeded. It is clear Israel is waiting for winter to kill those Palestinians it could not bomb. Starvation, dirty water and collapsing buildings can kill as readily as a bullet or a bomb. Diseases are rampant, especially those affecting young children, but the European Council is more concerned with Hamas's political future than children who are dying right now. I question the priorities and motives of the Council. I question its humanitarianism. In the West Bank, the Palestinian Authority is criticised for not scheduling elections as settler violence spills out of control. Again, we urge Israel not to continue to steal land in the West Bank and ethnically cleanse its rightful inhabitants. Israel must be held to account; it must be sanctioned. Israel cannot be treated with kid gloves while the crimes against humanity play out before our very eyes.

I was very disheartened to hear the Taoiseach. He hardly mentioned the proposed cuts to CAP. What does this say for the farmers and what they face? Today is a major milestone for the Irish Presidency, said the Minister for agriculture following last week's meeting of the European agricultural council. It is a major milestone all right in that under the Irish Presidency the agricultural council has proposed dismantling CAP as we know it. The IFA is going around lobbying TDs to say this. The proposal involves scrapping the two-pillar structure and folding agricultural funding into wider national and regional partnership plans. Pillar 2 would no longer be protected by a dedicated funding structure, leaving vital rural development and environmental programmes competing for money. Farmers must be properly rewarded for being good stewards of the land. Environmental protection must go hand in hand with farm profitability and not come at the expense of it or of regional development. What has the Minister of State, Deputy Byrne, done to secure this for Irish farmers? What will he do in the fight for them? We want to hear about it. Is the Commission proposal of a 20% to 25% CAP budget cut still on the table? The Government, Minister of State and Taoiseach should not stand for this. If a cut to our farmers of one quarter, or even one fifth, is coming, this will not work for our farmers. The Government cannot sign off on any European budget which contains a single euro less for our farmers. According to analysis by farming organisations in my constituency of Cavan-Monaghan, these cuts would reduce family farm incomes by €2,100 to €2,300. Our rural communities and family farms cannot be left paying the price for a weakened CAP. We need the Minister of State to stand up. They cannot afford a weak Government advocating for them. Now is the time to fight and I ask the Minister of State to do that.

I appreciate the chance to share a few thoughts I have following the European Council meeting. Primarily, credit is due to the Taoiseach, the Minister of State and the team across government for steering our Presidency of the EU. In a world that feels increasingly turbulent, Ireland is not just sitting at the table making up the numbers. We are helping to set the agenda and that is really important. We come from an island on the western edge of the Continent and it matters that we have our voice heard and can enact change. EU membership has shaped a modern Ireland. It built our economy, opened doors for generations of young people, backed our family farms and gave homegrown businesses the muscle to trade globally, yet we all know the Union cannot rest on past achievements. The playbook that brought us stability over the past 50 years will not automatically guarantee it for the next 50. That is why the focus on competitiveness, energy costs and a working Single Market hits the right note. Wearing my hat as Fianna Fáil spokesperson on enterprise and the circular economy, I want to talk straight about what competitiveness looks like on the ground. In Brussels, people talk endlessly about directives, frameworks, roadmaps and benchmarks, but drive through Athenry, Tuam, Gort or Loughrea and ask a shopkeeper or engineering firm owner what competitiveness means. It means opening an electricity bill without dread, finding and keeping decent staff and spending Friday evening running your business or with your family instead of drowning in compliance forms and box-ticking. Ultimately, it is about whether the doors stay open on Monday morning. If we want businesses across Europe to thrive, we have to stop tying their hands behind their backs. Progress on initiatives such as the One Europe, One Market roadmap, the EU Inc. model and the savings and investments union is welcome, if it allows Irish firms to scale without hitting an artificial wall or having to flee across the Atlantic for capital. We need a bonfire of red tape. Every duplicated declaration, unnecessary audit and overlapping rule drains energy from enterprise. Cutting back on administrative friction is not an ideological debate; it is simply common sense. One practical example is the packaging and waste regulations. In Galway East there is a small business called Mishnóc that makes the most beautiful leather goods. As there is no one-stop shop for European waste and packaging regulations, it would have to independently go throughout member states to find a company to deal with it. That administrative burden is massive. The one-stop shop for VAT has worked so well and we need to see that rolled out for the waste regulations. Mishnóc has essentially stopped selling into all the other European districts because of this and it has hampered its ability heading into the Christmas season. In terms of energy, the Council was right to highlight how war and global instability have wreaked havoc on power prices. Nowhere is the pain felt more acutely than right here. Energy is not just an abstract line item for businesses; it is something that hits every home, business and department. The energy bill is loud and present. It has to be dealt with systemically. For a manufacturing organisation in Galway, it is the difference between hiring five more people or shelving an expansion. For a family in a rural parish, it dictates what is left in the bank account come the third week of the month or for farmers, it is a crushing overhead eating away at already razor-thin margins. A long-term pivot away from unsustainable fossil fuel imports makes strategic sense but let us be clear - the green transition cannot become a luxury tax on ordinary people. We need renewables, a modern grid and storage capacity but communities will rightly push back against massive infrastructural upheaval if all they see at the end of it is higher standing charges or dearer bills. The public has to feel the dividend in their pockets, plain and simple. The regulations have to be up to date for the technology and scale of the proposals we are dealing with. I raised that with the Minister of State during Topical Issue Matters around wind energy guidelines. On agriculture, discussions around the post-2027 CAP framework are critical. I grew up on a farm in County Galway. I am a member of Macra na Feirme. I do not need a briefing document to explain to me how vital CAP is to rural communities. It is not a handout. It is an economic bedrock that keeps schools open, local shops trading, adds high-quality food to our tables and ensures there is resilience in our country for our own food supply and in our rural economies. The Government's fright to ring-fence CAP and cohesion funds in the multi-annual budget has my full backing but the money alone will not fix what is broken if the schemes continue to remain an administrative nightmare. Farmers want to be out in the yard and in the sheds. They do not want to be sitting under fluorescent lights trying to decipher bureaucratic jargon or upload endless geotagged photos of progress on the farm. This is not what they wanted to be a part of or what they signed up to. They need to be given their time back so they can do what they do best, which is keep the farm going. The Council once again confronted brutal international realities. The ongoing devastation in Ukraine is a grim reminder that peace and sovereign borders can never be taken for granted. Europe must stand firm behind Ukraine's right to defend its territory and secure a durable and just peace. Equally, the catastrophe unfolding across Gaza and the West Bank demands unyielding moral clarity. Ireland has always been respected because we call things as they are. We must keep pressing for full compliance with international humanitarian law, unimpeded aid delivery, the release of hostages, an immediate halt to civilian bloodshed and a viable political path to a two-state solution. Pushing for that is what will define who we are. Next week, when European leaders gather in Dublin for the EPC summit and the informal Council meeting, it will be a proud moment for our diplomatic standing. However, the measure of our Presidency will not be recorded by group photos or standing on the steps of Dublin Castle. It will be judged by whether apprentices across Europe can afford an apartment, a small manufacturer can keep employing more people, delivering more in their own communities and keep trading better. It will matter when a farmer working seven days a week can get a fair wage for the work they do and the next generation feels Ireland and Europe offer them a future worth staying for.

It is time we had a serious and honest discussion about the direction in which the European Union is heading. There is clearly a growing drift towards militarisation and the centralisation of power, a growing democratic deficit and overreach by EU bureaucrats and unelected officials. These are all the things we warned about during the Nice and Lisbon treaty referendums. which Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and the Labour Party told us at the time would not happen. We now see that EU funds are moving away from cohesion funding, CAP and regional development funding towards greater military spending. That is a very worrying signal in respect of the EU's direction. Under the proposals brought forward by Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, Ireland is expected to pay more into an EU budget but get less back on the most important programmes such as CAP. Instead, EU funds will benefit EU arms companies and a militarisation that does not have the support of the Irish people. That runs contrary to Ireland's tradition of military neutrality, a position that has allowed us to pursue an independent foreign policy, stand up for international law and contribute positively to peacekeeping and conflict resolution. The Government's decision to dismantle the triple lock cannot be viewed in isolation from all of that because it comes alongside deeper involvement in EU military structures and an increasing focus across Europe on rearmament. At a time when the EU is prioritising military expenditure, Ireland should be at the forefront of defending our independent voice, not weakening the safeguards that have protected our neutrality for decades. Sinn Féin and communities all over Ireland will resist any attempt to undermine Ireland's military neutrality. We will ensure the demand for a referendum. If the Government is confident about dismantling the triple lock neutrality protection, then it should be confident enough to put it to the people. We will continue to demand that it does so. Next week, as Ministers will dine and wine with members of the European Political Community, it now appears likely that our SNAs, nurses and care workers will be on the picket lines once again. They are just asking for a fair wage and for Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael to recognise the financial pressures ordinary workers and families are under. The tone-deaf approach of this Government is galling. It is forcing vital workers to the picket lines but the bankers, developers and vulture funds have never had to strike for sweetheart deals. The head of Dublin Airport did not have to strike for the Government to give him a pay hike of €95,000, nor did the head of Uisce Éireann for approval of a €118,000 annual increase. The head of the ESB did not have to strike for €92,000 extra, neither did Iarnród Éireann's for €75,000 extra nor the head of the National Stud for a €60,000 pay rise. All were gifted by Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael. It is very easy to see whose side this Government is on. The Irish people are clearly on the side of our SNAs, nurses and other public service workers. We will stand if we have to alongside our striking workers next week until the Government sees and realises the real struggles workers and families are living under.

October's EU Council meeting came at the midway point of Ireland's Presidency. In May and June, while dotting the i's and crossing the t's on plans for the Presidency, the Government might have thought of the public sector workers servicing these events and keeping the country running. Instead, it let the public service pay agreement lapse for the first time in decades. After months of delay and insulting low-ball offers, the Government is now set to host a crucial meeting of the European Political Community next week in the midst of yet more strike action, potentially, unless a resolution is reached at the eleventh hour. That failure delay lies squarely at the feet of the Taoiseach and Government Ministers. European leaders may fly here next week only to be greeted by picket lines of workers asking the Government for a fair deal. The October Council meeting we are here to discuss was a mixed bag. I welcome the Taoiseach's speech in which he emphasised the focus upon Ukraine, ensuring effective sanctions against Russia and the fast-tracking of Ukraine's accession to the EU. In the Labour Party, we very much welcome all of those things but I ask that the Minister of State convey to the Taoiseach our ongoing concerns about the issue of Aughinish Alumina. It is unconscionable that any exports from Ireland would feed Putin's brutal war machine particularly now as we see the people of Ukraine, civilians and children, under an ongoing onslaught from Putin. I ask that the Minister of State bring that issue in particular back to the Taoiseach. Speaking of effective sanctions, clearly, on the Israel-Palestine issue we need to see more effective sanctions against Israel. The EU is undermining its own mission as a peace project while we still see trade ongoing with Israel. While the eventual passage of the weakened occupied territories Bill was a late but welcome step, the trade Ireland and other EU countries does with illegal settlements is peanuts compared with the value of the EU-Israel Association Agreement. It is a stain on the EU that that agreement remains in place. Will the Minister of State ask the Taoiseach to update us on whether he took the opportunity at the European Council meeting in October, given that Ireland holds the Presidency, to make a clear case for ending the agreement, for ensuring it should no longer stand, and to work with like-minded countries to build a coalition against the association agreement to ensure that effective EU pressure would be brought to bear on Israel's genocidal regime? In his speech the Taoiseach also referenced the climate crisis and the climate catastrophe, but in reality it received only lip service in the read-out of the Council meeting. This is an existential crisis. It necessitates urgent action and co-operation across member states. We welcome the Commission's recent proposal for an EU climate resilience law, but we need to do much more to deal with the climate transition and energy crisis double whammy. Will the Minister of State ask the Taoiseach if he ensured discussion of the proposal from the S and D group in the European Parliament for a temporary energy emergency regulatory tool aimed at fast-tracking the rapid roll-out of renewables? As the Labour Party has said many times in this House, renewable energy is not just about climate protection; it is also about energy security and ensuring better cost-of-living measures. We have seen socialist governments in Spain accelerating the roll-out of renewables, bringing down energy costs for struggling households. Will the Government ensure the renewable energy transition is top of the agenda for the remainder of Ireland's Presidency? Another issue that needs to be prioritised in the Presidency is housing. It was notably absent from the post-meeting read-out. Again, this is a real concern for the Labour Party. It is a pan-European problem. The work of our MEP, Aodhán Ó Ríordáin, through the S and D group, has shown what is possible through EU structures. Aodhán Ó Ríordáin made it clear in his election in 2024 that housing was his number one priority. We saw, thanks to the S and D group, as the Minister of State will know, the establishment of the Parliament's first housing committee last year and the appointment of Dan Jørgensen as housing Commissioner. Young people across the EU are stuck in their childhood bedrooms, locked out of any aspirations to home ownership or even to renting their own home. Next week, the Minister of State and the Taoiseach will be welcoming leaders of every member state to a city with more than 12,000 people in emergency accommodation and homelessness. While clearly Ireland has squandered the opportunity of this Presidency to date to push for EU action on housing, will the Minister of State ask the Taoiseach to ensure investment in social and affordable housing will be at the heart of the next multi-annual financial framework and at EU budgetary level? I am aware the Taoiseach focused on that in his speech. Before I finish, I will speak briefly about workers' rights. It is concerning, in a country with some of weakest collective bargaining rights in Europe, to see so little emphasis on workers' rights and the use of the EU buzzword "competitiveness" often being used now to suppress the protection of workers' rights. That is a real concern for the Labour Party, the party of European Socialists, of which we are a member, and the S and D group. Will the Minister of State ask the Taoiseach how he is going to stand over the Irish Government's lack of action on workers' rights, particularly when we are likely to see strike action and people on the picket line because of the Government's failure to agree a public sector pay deal next week?

I welcome the opportunity to contribute following the European Council meeting of 15 and 16 October, particularly as Ireland continues its Presidency of the Council of the European Union. I will focus on three areas today, namely, the future of rural communities and farming, children's online safety and Europe's responsibilities in international development. I will begin with rural Ireland and the future of CAP. As a TD representing Mayo, I know just how important European investment is to our rural communities. I think of programmes such as LEADER. We have so many projects in Mayo run under LEADER. I think of the South West Mayo Development Company, which recently completed a project, Cabots Cookery School, that has completely reinvigorated a rural area. These projects, which are vital in Mayo and rural communities, are investing directly in communities and allowing local people to identify their own priorities. As our negotiations continue on the next European budget, it is essential that rural development remains a priority. I particularly welcome the hard work and progress being made by the Minister for agriculture, Deputy Heydon. He secured agreement on the Council's partial negotiating position for the Common Agricultural Policy on 26 October. He is over his brief, is having regular engagements with the Irish Farmers Association, IFA, the Irish Natura and Hill Farmers Association, INHFA, and other interested parties and I know he understands the realities facing Irish farmers on the ground. We know the upcoming changes to CAP are causing huge concerns. We know there is a proposed reduction in expenditure, but I have every confidence that our Minister will fight tirelessly to support the best possible CAP agreement for farmers. This agreement represents important progress recently, but we know that financial negotiations are far from concluded. I recently met representatives of the IFA in Mayo and I acknowledge the constructive engagement we had and the very real concerns they raised. The figures they presented to me are deeply concerning. According to their analysis, Mayo farmers could face a cumulative loss of €131.1 million over the next CAP period under one proposed payment scenario. This rises to €219.4 million under a lower payment scenario. These potential reductions are highly concerning. The IFA is calling for an increased CAP budget, proper recognition of active farmers, simpler regulations and appropriate transition arrangements. These are concerns that deserve to be heard. I strongly support the Minister's efforts to secure a properly funded CAP that protects farm incomes and the future of rural communities. Second, on children's online safety, I am chair of the Joint Committee on Children and Equality in the Oireachtas. We recently launched our online safety report with a focus on well-being. In this regard, I welcome the European Council's conclusions on protecting children online. We are looking forward to the EU KIDS Act being examined fully and the proposals concerning a minimum age for social media access being expanded further. We have 45 recommendations in our report and we look forward to them being considered when the EU KIDS Act is transposed into national law. One of the strongest messages from our work is that responsibility for protecting children cannot simply be placed on parents or schools. Platforms must be designed with children's safety and well-being in mind from the outset. Christmas is coming and people will go to the shops to buy toys. When we go into a shop we can see a stamp on a toy to show that it is safe and we are then happy to give it to our nieces and nephews or our children. Yet, we have our children on platforms that are designed, or look like they are designed, for their age but carry huge risks. Safety by design must be built in from the beginning. With that, considerable importance must be placed on hearing directly from children and young people. At two meetings of our committee, we spoke directly to young people. That is important under Article 12 of United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. The children talked to us about how much they use the online world for learning, communicating and creating. We have to get the balance right between children's right to privacy and right to safety but also their right to connection, creativity and learning. Ireland has an important opportunity during this EU Presidency to advance meaningful European action on age assurance, platform accountability and harmful design features. We must ensure that children's rights, safety and well-being are central to the development of a European digital policy. Finally, I will address international development and official development assistance. Last week, I travelled to Ethiopia, with two of the Members in the Chamber, on a cross-party visit that focused on maternal and child health and nutrition. It was a very inspiring but deeply sobering visit. Ethiopia is a country with enormous potential, but one facing serious challenges arising from conflict, displacement, food insecurity and climate shocks. Having spent almost two decades working in childhood development, I know the importance of the first 1,000 days of a child's life, from pregnancy to the age of two. Adequate nutrition during this period is fundamental to healthy physical growth and brain development. Supporting children's nutrition is about much more than providing food, however. It requires access to healthcare, clean water, maternal health services and functioning community support systems. What stuck me was the importance of co-ordination between communities, healthcare workers, governments and international partners. While we were there, we saw absolutely amazing work being done in advancing the digital agenda. We visited a neonatal intensive care unit where there were not enough ultrasounds or tracing machines for the babies but it had already transitioned to paperless data and that data was fed back in at the national level. We also heard how data is being used in refugee camps to give real-time data on available stocks, but then, quite starkly, one can visit a primary care centre where a mother may have walked two hours to get some nutrients and which has no clean water or there is a lack of gloves. There was a stark contrast between some of the aims they had and some of the realities on the ground. This brings me back to the European Council's discussion on the next multi-annual financial framework. The European Union, and Ireland more specifically, have a long-standing development partnership with Ethiopia. That partnership supports longer term development, including in areas like agriculture, renewable energy, healthcare and education. These investments matter because humanitarian assistance and long-term development must go hand in hand. We cannot expect a child to thrive without access to basic services and we cannot build sustainable development without peace and stability. As Europe negotiates its next seven-year budget, there will understandably be competing demands. We must invest in our own security, our competitiveness, agriculture and rural communities, but I do not believe that investing in Europe's future and investing in the well-being of vulnerable children elsewhere in the world are mutually exclusive. Development co-operation is also an investment in peace, stability and opportunity. I therefore ask the Government how Ireland intends to ensure that poverty reduction, maternal and child nutrition and humanitarian assistance remain priorities for us in these negotiations. How can we strengthen our co-operation between the EU, Irish Aid, UNICEF and other partner organisations to ensure that funding delivers measurable and lasting improvements? I returned from Ethiopia with an even greater appreciation of the importance of this work, and of UNICEF and our embassy on the ground. Ultimately, Europe's success must be measured not only by its economic strength but also by the difference it makes to people's lives both within Europe and beyond.

Yesterday there was an announcement by the Minister for justice, Deputy Jim O'Callaghan, and the Irish Prison Service that they recognise the importance of the old Cork detention barracks, or the old Cork prison, as it is called. People like Thomas Kent were imprisoned, executed and buried there. Terence MacSwiney started his hunger strike there, and many other republicans, not only Cork republicans but also nationalist republicans, were imprisoned there. The Minister has recognised that there is historical value in that building after Cork City Council voted to preserve it and to have it enshrined that it be protected. The Minister, however, has now come out in favour not of totally demolishing the prison but of the majority of it being demolished, with some parts of it being kept because of their historical value. Those parts, however, will be locked behind the new prison walls of the two new prisons being built, so people in Cork or anywhere else who want to visit this site of republican history will be barred by large prison walls and a Government that does not care about our history and our republican heroes but instead only pays lip service to them. I ask the Minister of State to take that to the Minister. To give the Minister of State an idea, at the European Council, Pedro Sánchez might tell him about the regret Spain feels following the demolition of Carabanchel Prison in Madrid, or perhaps the Minister of State's Polish counterparts could fill him in on Pawiak Prison in Warsaw, what that means to Polish people now and how much they regret decisions they made. I ask the Minister of State to take that on board and reach out to his European colleagues and ask them about that. Another issue I want to raise is the huge issue with Cork city's active travel scheme and the traffic in Cork at the moment. The Government is trying to encourage people to get out of their cars and get the cars off the road, but what we have is a bus service that does not arrive on time, one that is delayed and that does not work. At the same time, we have no light rail, we have cycle lanes that go nowhere and end abruptly, and there is no alternative for people. People therefore have to get in their cars, and now they are being stuck in them for hours. There is absolute gridlock in Cork in the mornings and evenings. What we need is a dependable bus service. Can we look at putting emergency park-and-ride facilities in GAA clubs and other sporting organisations' car parks to get people off the road? We have targets to meet, emission targets in relation to global warming and energy, and at the same time we are driving more and more cars down the road. I will leave the Minister of State with two things. A man contacted me who had - the Minister of State is kind of shaking his head-----

It is just that this was not raised at the European Council.

Do you know what it means? You are not reaching your targets in relation to emissions, getting cars off the road or global warming. You are driving more and more people into their cars. That creates gridlock, so if you want to know what it means, it is that you are not doing your job here because you are going off to Europe, where you can be the good boy over there, saying, "Oh, we are doing all this."

No. The Minister of State asked me a question and I answered him. I will give this example.

It took a man two hours and 45 minutes to travel from the northside-----

-----to get to Ballincollig for a job interview and he missed the interview by 45 minutes.

You might ask what that has to do with Europe. If you were doing your job, it would have something to do with it.

When European leaders come here on 12 November, they should consider that the US voters have just rejected Trump's agenda of warmongering against Iran and complicity with Israel's genocide against the Palestinian people and the cost that all of that has had for ordinary people in America, who are hammered with the cost of living. When the American people are rejecting Trump's warmongering and complicity with Israel, the European leaders coming to Dublin on Thursday week are embracing that agenda - to discuss the plan of Europe to double arms expenditure and continue its complicity with the Israeli regime while it commits an ongoing genocide against the Palestinian people. That is what the Irish Government is planning to do: trash our triple lock, trash our neutrality and join European leaders who, at the bidding of Donald Trump, want to double the European arms budget from €400 billion to €800 billion and continue trade with the Israeli regime while it massacres Palestinian people, continues the campaign of ethnic cleansing and continues the regime of apartheid. Europe is the biggest trading partner for the Israeli regime, and Ireland is the biggest trading partner in Europe with the Israeli regime that continues that genocide. Then the Government prattles on about a two-state solution, which is a dangerous alibi when the Israeli elections make it clear that there is no political party in the Israeli regime interested in peace or justice for the Palestinian people. They all want to just continue with the genocide and the ethnic cleansing. The Irish Government, however, pretends as if the Israeli regime is a normal one. It does billions' worth of trade with it and it allows Europe to sell weapons to it as it massacres Palestinians. Now the Irish Government wants to extend that logic to hundreds of billions more being spent on weapons and arms while there is no money for workers, who are going out on strike, while there is no money in Spain for housing, and while there is no money for education so that French students have to come out on the streets. Working people are paying for the warmongering and the complicity with genocide. We will protest next Thursday week, marching to the convention centre to say no to war and genocide in Europe.

It is, incredibly, almost five years since Putin invaded Ukraine. The death toll is utterly horrifying, running into the hundreds of thousands of people. However, we cannot close our eyes to the abuses of human rights that are taking place in Ukraine. The Government should not continue to close its eyes. When President Zelenskyy is here in Dublin in a couple of weeks' time, the Minister of State needs to ask him about the policies of internment and forcible conscription into the Ukrainian army that have been rolled out across Ukraine. People are being taken off the streets in unmarked vans to enlistment centres if they cannot produce the right exemption documents in a policy known as busification. Those conscripted have been reported to be injured by the officers enforcing this practice. One man, Andrii Dombrovskyi, who is 26 years old, reported having his leg broken during detainment. This is conscription for the working class, for ordinary people; it is not for the rich because the rich can bribe their way out of conscription. We cannot ignore this. The Minister of State needs to call out the abuses of human rights. The other thing, though, is that the Irish Government needs to not be complicit in these abuses of human rights because right now Ukrainians are suffering under the new temporary protection rules, which require proof of military exemption in order to be able to get temporary protection in the European Union. Ukrainians who do not have it are forced back into a war that they do not support and that they do not want to fight in. The Irish Government is currently complicit by sending back people who have come here seeking refuge, saying they do not want to fight. If they do not have the military exemption documents, they are sent back by the Irish Government to fight. It flies in the face of the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, which says that refugees cannot be returned to a country in which they are likely to face a threat to their life. Hungary has opted out of these new rules. The Irish Government should as well. We should also be counting the years Ukrainians have been here under temporary protection towards naturalisation. There is no reason for these people to be denied citizenship while under this protection.

I welcome the opportunity to contribute to these post-European Council statements. I welcome the fact that it is a standing item. It gives us, as TDs, the opportunity to contribute to the debate, albeit after the discussion, in the hope that it sticks in the minds of the Minister of State and other Ministers as they participate in other meetings of the European Council. I also note the event that is going to take place on Thursday week with a very significant presence from European leaders, that is, the meeting of the European Political Community. It is an important opportunity to discuss many of the issues facing the Continent at the moment. None of them are simple. They are complex. It is often forgotten in this country that there are many different views on all of these issues. Countries that are in closer proximity to threats that Ireland is not exposed to may understandably have very different approaches. It is the sovereign decision of the Irish people to participate in a Union that features all of that complexity. In joining the European Union, one of the things we joined was the complexity of the Continent. It has been complex for hundreds of years. It is about trying to navigate those differences and the different agendas different countries have. Having said that, I would like the most recent meeting of the European Council to have said more with regard to the situation in Gaza. The ceasefire, if it can be called a ceasefire, has provided some breathing room but there has not been enough progress on any side. The Palestinian election has been deferred. The Israeli election has taken place but we do not yet know what the outcome will be. Europe has a role. This House has said that. In calling for a review of the European trade agreement, the Taoiseach has also said it. Europe can do more with regard to the conflict in the Middle East. I would like to have seen some of that in the European Council's statement. I also want to see more on the implementation of a single market for financial services and financial products. I will go on to talk about the different freedoms we have in the EU in a moment but, alongside the free movement of people, the free movement of goods and capital is a cornerstone of what the European Union actually means. My inability, as a consumer in the European Union, to procure a mortgage, an insurance product or another financial product from any EU member state is a restriction. It is a failure of the European Union as a whole to grasp some of these issues, which I agree are very thorny, to deliver a single market for financial products. I know some steps have been taken with regard to regulatory oversight and so on but this is something that would really give consumers value. I accept that we also want to protect consumers but this would give consumers value. It is an example of how we have to move more. We have been able to do it in many other spaces, such as telecommunications and data roaming across the EU. All of these things have given benefits to consumers. It is important that we get the single market for financial products across the line. I urge the Government to do what it can within the remaining period of the Presidency. I understand that the EU budget is probably the biggest issue facing the Union. From my observations, it appears that Ireland is not taking the easy answer of just passing it on to the next holder of the Presidency. We are doing our very best to find a solution. I know the Government is respected for its ability to bring different countries together. Along with some of my colleagues, I recently had the opportunity to travel to Westminster to meet with some of the political parties in the UK. I also had some engagements in Belfast as part of an event at Stormont. There is definitely a change in the debate on Britain's role with the European Union. That is welcome. As somebody who really regretted Britain leaving the EU, it is welcome to see that it wants a greater and deeper connection with the EU. I also note Ursula von der Leyen's offer for Canada to become an associate member. I know that Britain and Canada are in different positions, with one being on the European Continent and one not, meaning that one is eligible for membership and the other not, but we have to be very careful about what European Union membership means, particularly in the context of British politicians considering this matter. The four freedoms of the EU exist for a very valid reason. The social justice check on the free movement of capital and goods is the free movement of people. If you allow capital and goods to be traded, they will be attracted to different centres around Europe. You have to allow Europe's population to avail of the benefits wherever those benefits arise. I would hate to see any dilution of that social justice check on the free movement of capital. The European Union is not just a financial or economic arrangement. It is an arrangement for the people of Europe and it must be of benefit to them. The Irish Government should protect that free movement within the European Union at all costs. We should not allow others to cherry-pick the benefits of membership, whether they are associate members or have a new relationship with the Union. It is not about being inhospitable or not seeing the benefit of common agreement on things. However, the European Union means something and we should protect that. That leads on to the matter of the candidate countries. I know there will be moves during our Presidency with regard to Montenegro and other countries. There is sometimes a rush to push for EU membership. In some ways, I am glad that it takes so long to become an EU member country. It should. There should be alignment, constraints and minimum standards to be reached in order to become an EU member. That applies to Ukraine as much as to any other country. The aspiration of EU membership should be there but I caution against having any sort of fast-track mechanism. I do not think anyone would argue that Montenegro has been on a fast track.

Ukraine is.

If I may make my point without interruption, I would argue that what is valuable about Europe and what is important to it should be criteria for all member countries. As I have said, the aspiration of membership, association with the European Union and sharing our values are all important but, if the European Union is to mean something, we need to protect those freedoms that are so important. We also need to protect the process by which countries become members of the European Union.

We are at a time of great uncertainty across the globe. The actions of the United States are having a devastating impact on our economy. It continues to pursue its policy of endless wars in the Middle East and ordinary workers across Ireland and the EU are forced to pay the price. Where is the strong leadership from the European Commission to stand up to this bully and say that enough is enough? Other world leaders have shown leadership but the EU, along with Ireland, continues to approach the United States with cap in hand. As I have said, we are in deeply uncertain times. This is a time when we should be increasing supports for domestic producers rather than increasing our outsourcing of food production to third countries that are beyond our control. Food security is fundamental to a strong and secure state. At present, we import 85% of our fruit and vegetables. I was recently at the launch of Talamh Beo's policy proposal for basic income supports for local food producers. This group has shown that we have enormous potential in this area. In the same year in which the Irish taxpayer is spending upwards of €300 million so that the Government can wine and dine EU officials as part of the EU Presidency, our farmers and primary producers are being told that a 24% reduction in the CAP looks likely.