Trevor Sargent
Question:167 Mr. Sargent asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will comment on the Government's attitude to further integration in the European Union. [20333/00]
Written Answers. - European Integration.
There is an ongoing debate within the Union on the extent to which the "widening" of the Union by enlargement can be combined with closer integration or "deepening", now and in the future. The Taoiseach and I have set out the Government's view on these issues on a number of occasions both in the Dáil and elsewhere. I have indicated the need for reflection and awareness of the evolution taking place in the European Union and in Ireland's place in and relationship to the Union, especially as we are becoming relatively more prosperous.
We have consistently favoured broadening the Union through enlargement, and, through our participation in EMU, for example, have shown ourselves ready to embrace deepening of the Union. However, the concept of further deepening requires clear analysis of what is meant, and of what the structures can support. We strongly feel that the Union is successful because of the balance that has been achieved, through the Treaty, between the supra-national and intergovernmental, that is, the division of competences among the institutions and between them and the member states. Like many other member states, we will wish to see that delicate balance maintained into the future, including in the context of the negotiations currently under way in the framework of the intergovernmental conference.
It is widely recognised that the successful development of the Union requires a broad measure of public support. This is why the Commission, for example, has recently initiated a significant public information programme, while the Taoiseach and I have also sought to encourage greater public debate.
Ireland has benefited enormously from membership of the European Union and has at the same time contributed constructively to the Union's development, politically and institutionally. As a country which supports both the enlargement of the Union, and the updating of its institutional arrangements on a balanced basis to meet the challenges ahead, we will participate fully in the reform process, most particularly in ensuring the successful conclusion of the present intergovernmental conference.