I am currently a student finishing Transition Year and my parents will face significant difficulties sending me to a good university if fees are reinstated in Ireland. What is your position on university fees and if the Fianna Fáil government does reinstate them, will you take action in Europe to ensure that whatever the Parliament can do to alleviate financial difficulties of middle-and-working class Dublin families trying to make a better life for their children.

I scored 5 As and 5 Bs in my Junior Certificate examinations, and I hope to score above 500 points in my Leaving Certificate, and I wish to go into law, but there is practically no chance of me being able to get through college and the further education required to practice if fees are instated in Irish universities. I promise that if you commit to helping students get through the tough times and come out as a new, well educated workforce ready to come out running with the end of the recession, I will try to convince my parents to vote for yourself.

03.06.2009
Reply from
Proinsias De Rossa

Dear ,

Many thanks for your question. I was a member of the Government which abolished third level fees and the Labour Party is opposed to their reintroduction - see Ruairi Quinn TD´s statement setting out our position, which is available at www.labour.ie

Education is a matter that comes under the exclusive responsibility of the Irish Government so the campaign to oppose fees will have to be waged in Ireland in the first instance. The EU´s role is to promote cooperation between national educational systems, to encourage student mobility (e.g. the Erasmus scheme) and to help Member States´ educational systems to ´learn from each other´. In the European Parliament I have also pressed the European Commission to ensure that students receive all grants they would be entitled to as EU citizens if they are studying in other Member States. If returned to the EP, I will continue to work on these issues.

Best wishes,

Proinsias

Jobs

14.05.2009
Question from

I would like to know your views on the Liberalisation of the Postal Service, which is due to happen in January 2011.
Will you work to ensure quality postal services in Ireland and do you recognise the vital role played by An Post in delivering the Universal Service Obligation(USO)?
Will you work to ensure appropiate financial support in order to maintain the USO, but not at a cost to the taxpayer given that An Post is currently run without government support?

Finally, will you demonstrate that postal services should provide important, decent and stable jobs that have to be protected even in times of liberalisation and financial crisis?

20.05.2009
Reply from
Proinsias De Rossa

Dear ,

Thanks for your question. In July 2007, the EP agreed to the final stage of the controlled liberalisation of the postal service, a process which began 15 years ago. In particular, the Labour Party and our sister parties in the European Parliament insisted that the liberalisation deadline be pushed back from 2009 (as favoured by Member States´ Governments) to 2011, that the universal service, as provided by An Post, must include at least one delivery and collection five days a week for every citizen, on the need to maintain a well-functioning postal network with a sufficient number of access points in remote or sparsely populated areas, on the includion of working conditions in Member States´ authorisation procedures, and on the imposition of conditions on the supply of postal services for non-economic reasons, such as compliance with employment conditions and social security schemes laid down by law and/or by collective agreements.

With regard to funding, the directive provides that if the Government determines that the universal service obligations entail a net cost, it will draw up a financing plan and notify the Commission. The Commission must provide assistance to the Government on the implementation of this Directive, including on the calculation of any net cost of the universal service, in line with guidelines set out in the directive.

It´s important to realise that had this directive not been approved by the EP two years ago, liberalisation would have occured on 1 January 2009 and without many of the protections inserted by Labour and its allies during the negotiation of this proposal between 2006 and 2007. I was happy that we achieved the best deal we could possibly have got in the circumstances of a conservative-led European Parliament and Council. I believe the directive respects the rights and obligations of postal operators like An Post and all workers operating in the postal services.

This directive must now of course be implemented into Irish law and followed through at national level by December 2010. If returned to the European Parliament on 5 June, I will work with Labour TDs and with Labour councillors to monitor how this is done in Ireland and I will not hesitate to highlight breaches and problems at European level. The European Commission must also report back to MEPs on implementation of the directive at regular intervals and I will take a full part in this process.

I would also add that Labour´s European manifesto, available at www.derossa.com, commits Labour to include a ´social progress clause´ in every piece of European law, to take social impact assessments into account when developing new laws, and to a full assessment of the process of liberalisation.

Best wishes,

Proinsias

Social policy

13.05.2009
Question from

Do you support the liberalisation of the postal services?
The Post Office plays a vital role in our community in terms of jobs and services it provides which must be protected. What steps will you take to ensure that this is the case?
Can we depend on you to be a guardian of the public interest and vital public services?
Do you think taxpayers should be forced to fund An Post in the future when it is run without state aid now?
If not how do you propose to fund the universal service obligation which guarantees that every citizen enjoys a proper postal service with collection and delivery five times a week with a single price to all destinations?

20.05.2009
Reply from
Proinsias De Rossa

Dear Colin,

Thanks for your question. In July 2007, the EP agreed to the final stage of the controlled liberalisation of the postal service, a process which began 15 years ago. In particular, the Labour Party and our sister parties in the European Parliament insisted that the liberalisation deadline be pushed back from 2009 (as favoured by Member States´ Governments) to 2011, that the universal service, as provided by An Post, must include at least one delivery and collection five days a week for every citizen, on the need to maintain a well-functioning postal network with a sufficient number of access points in remote or sparsely populated areas, on the includion of working conditions in Member States´ authorisation procedures, and on the imposition of conditions on the supply of postal services for non-economic reasons, such as compliance with employment conditions and social security schemes laid down by law and/or by collective agreements.

With regard to funding, the directive provides that if the Government determines that the universal service obligations entail a net cost, it will draw up a financing plan and notify the Commission. The Commission must provide assistance to the Government on the implementation of this Directive, including on the calculation of any net cost of the universal service, in line with guidelines set out in the directive.

It´s important to realise that had this directive not been approved by the EP two years ago, liberalisation would have occured on 1 January 2009 and without many of the protections inserted by Labour and its allies during the negotiation of this proposal between 2006 and 2007. I was happy that we achieved the best deal we could possibly have got in the circumstances of a conservative-led European Parliament and Council. I believe the directive respects the rights and obligations of postal operators like An Post and all workers operating in the postal services.

This directive must now of course be implemented into Irish law and
followed through at national level by December 2010. If returned to the
European Parliament on 5 June, I will work with Labour TDs and with
Labour councillors to monitor how this is done in Ireland and I will
not hesitate to highlight breaches and problems at European level. The
European Commission must also report back to MEPs on implementation of
the directive at regular intervals and I will take a full part in this
process.

I would also add that Labour´s European manifesto, available at www.derossa.com, commits Labour to include a ´social progress clause´ in every piece of European law, to take social impact assessments into account when developing new laws, and to a full assessment of the process of liberalisation.

Best wishes,

Proinsias

EU defence

12.05.2009
Question from

How do you feel about the fact that our tax payers money will be spent on military equipment and hardware? This amount will be dictated to us by the EDA European Defence Agency. When we don´t have enough money for hospitals or education for our children. Your party want a yes vote for lisbon. By voting yes you are voting for the EDA. .. The EDA is a central part of the Lisbon treaty...
Hospitals NOT Helicopters I say.
Please explain you way out of that one!

19.05.2009
Reply from
Proinsias De Rossa

Dear ,

Many thanks for your question. Irish tax payers money will be spent on military equipment and hardware on the basis of the policies and decisions of the Irish Government alone and no one else. The suggestion that the European Defence Agency can dictate the amount of defence expenditure has as much validity as the assertion that the Lisbon Treaty provides for conscription.

The EDA was established in 2004 and its mission is to support the Council and the Member States in their efforts to improve the EU’s defence capabilities in the field of crisis management and to sustain the European Security and Defence Policy. It operates under the authority of the Council of Ministers. Participation in the Agency does not impose any specific obligations or commitments on Ireland other than a contribution to its budget – this year about €350,000 to a total budget of €32 million. Involvement in individual projects of the Agency is a matter for national decision on a case-by-case basis.

The provision in the Lisbon Treaty that Member States should aim to improve their military capability is simply a statement of the need to ensure that the EU, working within the terms of the UN Charter, can meet the demands of crisis management and peacekeeping in today’s world. There is no prescription of how each Member State will live up to this general provision.

The work of the EDA can contribute to the required improvement by achieving efficiency and effectiveness in the equipment field. As General Pat Nash, who commanded the EU peacekeeping mission in Chad has commented, "if Ireland goes outside the EDA and opts out of the situation, certainly the Defence Forces are going to have to pay more for what they need…”

Under the Lisbon Treaty, the EDA would also become accountable to directly-elected MEPs for the first time. I see this as a very positive development.

Best wishes,

Proinsias

Economy

06.05.2009
Question from

Given that most economies seem to be in a catch 22, in that raising taxes is leaving less money for people to spend, which results in less taxes collected, coupled with rising unemployment increasing social costs and further reducing taxes collected, what is your vision for stimulating employment? The assumptions are the government does not have money to spend on big infrastructure projects, or business incentives and social costs are rising while tax receipts continue to fall. What can be done to change the tide into a positive direction?

12.05.2009
Reply from
Proinsias De Rossa

Dear ,

Thank you for your question, which I think raises why we need Europe now more than ever. The Labour Party has been to the forefront in putting jobs at the top of the political agenda in Ireland but what what we need at European level is to work together better and agree a strengthened European economic recovery plan. The Labour Party has and our sister parties in the Party of European Socialists have set out detailed proposals in this regard which are available at www.pes.org . This has been incorporated into our European election manifesto available at www.labour.ie from 13 May.

Best wishes,

Proinsias

previous questions to Proinsias De Rossa