Europe Day: Statements Seanad Éireann — 2026-05-07 ============================================================ Joe Conway (IND), Cultural and Educational Panel Gabhaim buíochas leis an Seanadóir Keogan as ucht a bheith fial flaithiúil agus an t-am a thabhairt dom chun cúpla focal a rá faoin gceist seo. Tá muid ag ceiliúradh ós rud é go bhfuil ár mballraíocht den Aontas Eorpach ag dul ar aghaidh anois le níos mó ná 50 bliain. Is fíor a rá go bhfuil muid go léir, beagnach, sa Seomra seo bródúil as sin. I do not really have all that much to add to what has been said already but I notice that Robert Schuman is getting a great airing today. It is probably no harm to mention some of the other founding fathers, such as Altiero Spinelli from Italy, Konrad Adenauer and many others who came together in a very enlightened way after the horrors of the Second World War to give us an economic community at the time, which latterly spread out into the European Union. I absolutely accept what Senator Keogan has said. The European Union is not without its faults but it is an amazing organisation. I will say from my very humble position as a Senator to the Minister of State, Deputy Byrne, the Government and all who are making this amazing Presidency a reality for us, that I wish they are crowned with great success and they bring a very positive focus to our country for the six months from July to Christmas. That is shared widely around the Chamber and in the Lower House also. I welcome our erstwhile colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Buttimer, to the Chamber for the umpteenth time. This is a very special day for all of us to commemorate the fact we are proud members of the European Union. There are also regrets. We are coming up to the tenth anniversary of what is probably the greatest reverse the European Union has ever suffered, which was the cataclysmic decision by the people of the UK, in their own sovereign goodwill and opinion, to remove themselves from the European Union. Unfortunately, it has left us with the singularly difficult problem of a country that has a border which is fronted on one side by a country that is outside of the EU and ourselves inside. The Government of Britain and the European Union have come together manfully - if that is not politically incorrect in this day and age - and resolutely to see through and see off the difficulties to a great extent. I am delighted with that. It is very fitting that we mark the occasion on this day. It remains for me to say that I am happy to accord with the views and wishes of the House in congratulating our membership and wishing the project well in the future. --- Source: Houses of the Oireachtas. Licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). The Official Report is revised after first publication; the fetch timestamp below identifies the version quoted. Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2026-05-07/debate/main Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:54+00:00 Sitting date: 2026-05-07