Vol. 502 No. 4
87 Mr. Durkan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if she has satisfied herself that all Irish manufactured or Irish sourced products have unimpeded access to the European market in accordance with the letter and spirit of EU treaties; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [8576/99]
88 Mr. Durkan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if she has raised at EU Council of Ministers meetings suggestions of re-nationalisation in respect of some national Governments' attitudes to the EU; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [8577/99]
89 Mr. Durkan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if she has identified areas at EU level wherein evidence of re-nationalisation in terms of markets can be established; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [8578/99]
90 Mr. Durkan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the degree to which EU manufactured goods or services have unimpeded access to the market; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [8579/99]
91 Mr. Durkan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the number of complaints, if any, she has received or made in respect of deviations from the spirit of the Single Market; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [8580/99]
95 Mr. Durkan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if, in the run up to the recently announced resignation of the EU Commission, her Department has drawn to the attention of the Commissioners any breaches of EU treaties with particular reference to equal access to markets; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [8584/99]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 87, 88, 89, 90, 91, and 95 together.
Ireland has consistently stressed at the Internal Market Council the need to ensure the proper functioning of the Single Market to ensure the freedom of movement of goods, services, capital and people.
In accordance with the conclusions of the Dublin European Council of December 1996, the European Commission drafted an action plan for the Single Market which was presented to the European Council in Amsterdam. The plan identified key faults in the Internal Market which needed to be addressed if the Internal Market is to function more effectively and lead to increased employment and higher incomes for European business and citizens. The deadline for the implementation of the action plan was 1 January 1999, the date for the introduction of the single currency. The plan contained four strategic targets whose achievements were necessary if the Single Market is to function more effectively. Each strategic target comprised a number of specific actions; there were 66 individual actions in total.
At the Internal Market Council on 25 February 1999, the European Commissioner with responsibility for the Internal Market, Commissioner Monti, presented the first evaluation of the action plan. His opinion was that, by and large, the plan's outcome could be considered a success with progress sought in the plan in most areas having been achieved. The evaluation also identified the areas where further work is still needed to build upon the achievements in the plan and, also, where targets were not achieved.
Reports submitted recently by the member states and the Commission, within the context of the Cardiff Process of Economic Reform, on the functioning of product and capital markets confirm that considerable progress has been achieved in developing the Internal Market through the dismantling of barriers to trade and by opening up national markets for increased competition. The Internal Market Council concluded that this positive development is not least the result of the action plan and the clear political commitment by member states and the Commission to achieve their objectives and, in particular, to speed up the implementation of Internal Market legislation and improve its enforcement.
