Republican News · Thursday 31 January 2002

Irish people "disconnected" from EU

BY ROBBIE MacGABHANN

While Bertie Ahern was asking his EU counterparts to consider committing themselves to a declaration on Irish neutrality, the other 14 EU leaders and their foreign ministers who were gathered in Barcelona last weekend were moving on with their plans to create "the most competitive knowledge based economy in the world".

What the contribution of the Dublin government was to this debate and the 73 pages of declarations we don't actually know, except Bertie Ahern's satisfaction that the EU was 'back on track'.

The leaders agreed that the EU energy market would be opened up for competition by 2004, meaning an effective end to state-owned electricity infrastructure. Seven different directives on financial services were signed as well as agreement for the EU to set up its own global positioning satellite network costing €2.5 billion.

There were agreements on broadband technology, EU air traffic control and EU commitments to development aid.

Of immediate interest to Irish workers should be the alliance emerging between Tony Blair and the right-wing governments in Italy and Spain. Together, they are trying to ensure that the EU's attempt to create a real single labour market will be one where workers' rights are substantially diluted. No comment as yet from the Dublin government here, despite the fact the British Trade Union movement has condemned Blair.

No comment either on the positive commitments obtained by the French that the new single EU energy market will guarantee "security of supply, especially for remote areas and vulnerable groups in the population".

The EU has committed member states to provision of childcare for 90% of children between three and schoolgoing age by 2010. This is a positive step forward but will involve a lot of commitment from the government of a state where the childcare system is in a shambles. So far there is no comment from the Government on this issue either.

None of this should come as a surprise to us particularly as Irish people were "extremely disconnected" from the EU according to Fianna Fáil minister Séamus Brennan. Brennan was speaking at the Forum for Europe the day before the Barcelona summit began and told delegates that people regarded arrangements between the Government and the EU as "a well-kept secret".

Brennan said, "Decisions made in Europe affect all of us every single day" and that, "More often than not we are completely unaware of the implications of the new legislation and directives until after they become law, by which time it's much too late to influence or alter the content."

Well this week it seemed to be business as usual. The Dublin government signed up to a range of commitments last week, some good but very many bad and dubious ones all with no comment before or after the fact. This goes to the core of why republicans oppose the EU unification process. Seamus Brennan seemed to understand last week. When will Bertie wake up to at least recognizing what the problem is?

Maybe too Ahern didn't pause to think why nearly 500,000 people were protesting outside the summit and are we really "back on track" with an EU dependent on riot police to make its point?