Vol. 350 No. 5
asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if the Government have made any representations to the European Parliament concerning their recent resolution urging the EEC countries to adopt a common security policy; and if he will make a statement on the implications for Irish neutrality of the passing of the resolution.
3.
asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if, in order to allay grave public concern in the matter, he will make a statement repudiating the resolution tabled by the Christian Democrat Group and passed at the European Parliament session of 11 April 1984 which calls on the EEC to become involved in every aspect of security policy and to speak with a single voice in NATO, in total disregard of Irish neutrality.
I propose to take Questions Nos. 2 and 3 together. I have no hesitation in rejecting the resolution referred to in the Deputies' questions, since it contains a number of proposals which are quite unacceptable to Ireland.
Moreover, as Deputies are no doubt aware, this resolution of the European Parliament imposes no obligation on member states. It cannot, therefore affect our policy of neutrality.
That policy is already well known to the Members of the European Parliament; besides, the contributions to the debate of the Parliament on this resolution by those Irish Members who spoke constituted a vigorous restatement and defence of our policy of neutrality. In these circumstances it is, therefore, unnecessary for the Government to make representations to the European Parliament on the matter. In any event, as Deputies should know, the European Parliament is not answerable to individual governments and it is not normal practice for governments to make representations to it.
Would the Minister agree that the Christian Democrats in the European Parliament, with whom his party are allied, have never paid the slightest regard whatsoever to Ireland's position of neutrality? Is it not a source of embarrassment to the Minister's political party that they belong to that particular group in the European Parliament that completely snubs and ignores Fine Gael's views on such an important matter?
It should have been evident from my initial reply that I regard the tabling of that resolution as unfortunate. What should be borne in mind are the actions of those Irish Members of the European Parliament who are members of the Christian Democrats Group, who were present for the debate and who spoke and voted against the resolution.
Would the Minister not agree that Fine Gael are totally unable to exercise any influence on the position of the Christian Democrats grouping in relation to a vital national interest such as Irish neutrality?
I do not accept that entirely, but what I do accept is that, first, the number of members we have from Ireland in the European Parliament is quite small — 18 for the whole island. Secondly, I suppose I could suggest that had Fine Gael a stronger representation — as we will have hopefully after the next European elections — we would be in a better position to influence the views of this most important group.
Would the Minister agree that this is the second occasion on which a similar kind of decision was taken by the European Parliament, that a similar decision was taken in January 1983 when the Haagerup Report was accepted by the European Parliament; that there has been a failure on the part of Irish MEPs to defend the Irish position vis-á-vis NATO and neutrality and that, if they had been doing their job in the EEC, this resolution would not have been proposed in the way it was and passed?
We are getting into argument and we should try to avoid that.
There was the Haagerup Report. In fact there were other reports which, in whole or in part, were of concern to us from the point of view of our position of neutrality. There was the Ferguson Report and also the Spinelli Report. All I can say is that the Irish Members of the European Parliament generally, but in particular the Members of the Christian Democrats Group, have at all times been careful to explain to the European Parliament, so that it would be fully understood, Ireland's neutral position and endeavoured, as far as their limited numbers would allow, to influence the decisions of the European Parliament to take that into account.
