North Tipperary Deputy Noel Coonan, Fine Gael, today outlined why Ireland needs a stable relationship with the European Union as we battle through economically turbulent times.
The Deputy noted that Ireland and North Tipperary has been transformed since joining the European Union in 1973, receiving some €60 billion in funding. For a generation, the EU has been the key framework within which the county has developed economically, socially and politically.
How has North Tipperary benefitted from it’s relationship with the European Union?
140,000 jobs, 994 companies, and 85% of exported goods depend on EU
During the current economic crisis we need to retain a firm grip on the economic handrail that the EU provides.
Deputy Noel Coonan
Deputy Coonan stated:
“Ireland’s economic future is dependent on Europe. There are currently 994 foreign companies based here providing 140,000 jobs accounting for 85% of our manufacturing exports. They spend €15bn annually in the Irish economy and account for almost 50% of our corporation tax take (approx.€3bn).
Since we joined the EU one million jobs have been created here and two out of every three jobs in the Irish workforce are based on exports into the EU market place. The EU has devised a €5 billion recovery plan that Ireland stands to gain from in the form of investment in our infrastructure and the green economy. We simply do not have the luxury of letting this opportunity for financial recovery pass us by. We are a small, agile economy with a well educated workforce, but these advantages will become irrelevant if we choose step away from the heart of Europe.
One of the key reasons international investors come to Ireland is because of our position as a gateway to Europe and the access that this provides to a market of hundreds of millions of people in the EU. If our relationship with the EU is seen to be damaged, the incentive for them to invest here in the future will be reduced. That is why so many major Irish companies are calling for a Yes vote. They know the long-term impact of a No vote could have on our economic recovery. They know that a Yes vote is crucial to how Ireland is seen by investors, and we need their investments to create jobs. Fine Gael believes that a Yes vote to Lisbon is a Yes to jobs and a Yes to speedy economic recovery.”
Dear irish people!
Pleace vote for democracy and against the treaty of lisbon. Pleace stop the treaty of lisbon. Is is anti-democratic, militaristic, anti-social. The disadvantages are much bigger, than the advantages. The EU can live with its actual laws. They should only be changed into a democratic direction. With the treaty of lisbon, the european council is able to change this treaty in great parts without asking the parliament. This is nearly the same law, which made the national party of Germany so powerfull in our country in the year 1933. Our basic law (the german constitution) and all other european constitutions should NOT be replaced by the treaty of lisbon. But the new treaty tries to bring alright sytstems in a lower level than the new european right.