Taoiseach clashes with Merkel on EU treaty changes

Finally it looks like Ireland is standing up for itself even if it is only the tiniest bit and probably too late at this stage.




Taoiseach Enda Kenny has expressed grave reservations that Germany’s demand for European Union treaty change will help resolve the euro zone crisis.

After talks in Berlin, Mr Kenny said he understood chancellor Angela Merkel’s call for tighter EU oversight of euro zone budgets to prevent another crisis - but not if it slowed progress or inhibited member states’ own particular budgetary strategy.

“We need to deal with the crisis with the tools we have now,” he said. “I don’t want to get into a position where you have major a major competency change that would open the door to many countries wanting treaty change from their own point of view. That would be a long situation.”

Standing beside an increasingly testy German leader, Mr Kenny said that, in Ireland’s view, EU members could best regain market confidence by exhausting first the “feasibilities in existing schemes”.

By contrast, Dr Merkel said Berlin was seeking “very limited but clear treaty change” to allow “more ability to intervene” in national budgetary policy.

“We are of the opinion that … member states should be able to be taken before the European Court for not adhering to the terms of the stability and growth pact,” she said. “This is possible for all other EU legislation but not for the stability and growth pact.”

The chilly press conference was in stark contrast to the warm welcome for the Taoiseach, with full military honours at the Chancellery. After a working lunch, the temperature dropped visibly between the two leaders.

Irish delegation officials conceded Dublin was playing “hardball” after sensing no readiness by Berlin to support the principle of greater flexibility in Ireland’s EU-IMF programme.

“As we make progress as a small country in bailout position it is important and has been recognised that countries' like us need demonstrations of support,” said Mr Kenny.

Apart from praise from Dr Merkel for Ireland’s “admirable” reform progress, she signalled movement on programme terms.

Mr Kenny insisted that “three forensic assessments” by the troika had confirmed that “Ireland has always supported fiscal responsibility and discipline”.

In a clear dig at his host, Mr Kenny added: “Ireland has always complied with the conditions of (euro zone) membership, we’ve never broken the stability pact rules. If it wasn’t for the prerequisite to recapitalise banks we would have a lower than average debt to GDP ratio.”

Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources Pat Rabbitte said this morning that while the Government did not want to hold a referendum on treaty change, it would not “dismiss it sight unseen".

Speaking to RTÉ radio, the Minister said: “If there was an alleviation of debt burden through treaty change we would have to look at it. I wouldn’t dismiss it without knowing what it would offer to the Irish people."

This afternoon, Mr Kenny will hold talks with German finance minister Wolfgang Schäuble and give a keynote address to the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, a major political think-thank.

In the evening, he meets important Irish trade partners in Frankfurt.

I think a lot of Irish eyes have been opened by recent event in Europe. I may be wrong but I seriously doubt that the Irish public would vote yes for these changes.