European relations - Time to take proactive role in EU

During the Celtic Tiger period, this country was seen as one of the great success stories on the international stage, but we have allowed our influence to wane.

Now that things have turned sour, we need to repair our influence within the European Union.

Foreign Affairs Minister Micheál Martin seemed to be saying, during a Christmas interview with the Irish Examiner concerning the Lisbon Treaty, that we lost the run of ourselves. In the era of Celtic Tiger we suddenly felt we had made it and could stand on our own without the outside help that allowed the country to overcome the recession of the 1980s. At the time the treaty was rejected by the Irish people, it seemed that people were saying that we did not need Europe, but once the real impact of the recent downturn began to be felt, there was a distinct change of heart.