asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the steps he has taken to prepare Ireland for the Presidency of the EC which will commence on 1 January 1990; the nature of and steering committee established by him to date; the terms of reference of the committee; the composition of its membership; the priorities which Ireland proposes to focus upon during our six months tenure of the Presidency; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
Written Answers. - Irish Presidency of EC.
54.
As the Deputy is aware, the Presidency of the European Communities involves major responsibilities for members of the Government and for the Irish administration as a whole.
The Taoiseach will assume the Presidency of the European Council, which will meet in Dublin Castle in June 1990. As Minister for Foreign Affairs I will take the Chair in General Affairs Councils and 11 other Ministers will chair meetings of the Council concerned with their areas of responsibility. Altogether we expect approximately 37 meetings of the Council to take place in Brussels and Luxembourg during the period of the office of our Presidency. In addition, a small number of informal meetings of Ministers will take place in Ireland. At official level approximately 200 committees and working groups come under the aegis of the Council and Ireland will be called upon to provide chairpersons as well as national spokesmen for all of these.
In the area of European Political Co-operation, I will preside at three ministerial meetings and officials of my Department will chair meetings of the Political Committee and of 21 working groups.
It will be our task during the Presidency to determine the agenda for all these meetings, to lead the discussions and to do everything in our power to achieve agreement on the various issues at hand, so that the business of the Community is effectively discharged.
Ministers will also have significant responsibilities associated with the European Parliament, which, under the Single European Act, has been accorded an enhanced role in the Community's operations.It is our intention to maintain close co-operation with the Parliament during the Presidency.
The Irish Presidency will, of course, continue to maintain the close relations which we have already established with the Commission — a relationship which we could regard as essential to the success of the Presidency.
The responsibilities of the Presidency extend to other areas also. The duty of co-ordinating and expressing the position of the Community and of the Twelve in various international fora including the UN, the OECD, the GATT, the ILO and the Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe will also fall to Ireland, as will the role of acting as spokesperson for the Twelve in contacts with third countries.
The duties of the Presidency require a thorough knowledge of the subject matter involved in the various issues and the requisite skills, including language skills, to prepare and conduct the meetings in an efficient manner. My Department, and the other Departments involved, are taking the necessary steps to ensure that officials entrusted with the tasks of Chairmanship are well able to perform the duties required of them.
Other aspects of preparation are well in hand. These include the compilation of the calendar of meetings, arrangements for the deployment of the necessary staff, and the provision of conference accommodation, transport and other facilities in respect of those meetings which will be held in Ireland.
I do not feel it necessary to set out the internal co-ordination arrangements which are in place for the running of the Presidency. The Deputy will understand from what I have already indicated that co-ordinated preparation for the successful conduct of our Presidency is at an advanced stage.
Finally as regards policy priorities, these are under ongoing review but I am sure the Deputy will appreciate that with two Presidencies to be completed before Ireland takes the Chair, it would be both premature and inappropriate to announce our intentions at this stage.