The following is the full text of the presidential address by the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, to the Fianna Fail Ardfheis in Dublin on Saturday.
As we celebrate a new millennium, we can look back with pride at how far we have come, even in our own lifetime, but also look forward with unprecedented confidence towards a new horizon: an island at peace, a future of prosperity, an Ireland of strong family, community and social solidarity.
All of us here know that we live in times of great change in the history of this coun try. This is not a false dawn or passing phase. Ireland is moving rapidly to a place at the forefront of Europe - a place of exciting innovation, a place of opportunity for all our people, in every part of our land.
And I stand before you tonight, as leader of Fianna Fail, to tell you how our party in government, with our partners the Progressive Democrats, is charting a steady and speedy course toward a better Ireland for all our people.
Major Achievements
Fianna Fail in government have completed the review of our far-reaching Action Programme for the Millennium for the second half of our term; and a £41 billion National Development Plan which will transform the social and economic life of this country.
We have negotiated a new social partnership programme which sets out the path to continued prosperity, fairness and full employment, and the Good Friday agreement, which underpins peace, a peace the people of this island deserve, have worked hard for, and demand for all our futures.
Fianna Fail's political vision is a social vision
All Fianna Fail policy has as its central aim a social purpose. Our political vision is a social vision. Our political commitment and vision is to achieve an Ireland where people can live in freedom. That means real freedom from poverty, freedom to take up educational opportunity, freedom to run a business, freedom from unemployment and avoidable ill-health. It is an ambitious project. It is our project. With Fianna Fail, it will happen.
We want everybody, young and old, to have a decent quality of life, a first-class education and quality training, to have a properly paid job, good housing and prompt access to decent health and childcare facilities. The true measure of our party and our leadership is our will to raise our sights, to demand even more of ourselves, and to deliver results for our people.
Personal pledge to build a better Ireland
As leader here tonight, I pledge to do everything I can to build a better Ireland, and I want to ask your help as we move forward. I believe that, working together as a united party, we can, and we will, eliminate poverty. We can, and we will, eliminate unemployment. We can further reduce crime and its causes and stop the spread of drugs. We can sustain a strong economy and an even stronger educational system.
We can be a country which cares for all our people, particularly those who need our help the most, and above all we can, and we will, secure a lasting peace for all of our children. As Fianna Fail moves forward, our guiding stars are peace, prosperity and inclusion. These stars will light the way to a caring society, a successful economy, where solidarity, community and neighbourliness are valued as well as individual fulfilment.
Solidarity at home sustains solidarity overseas
But while facing up to our problems at home, I believe that it is our duty also to look outwards. As Eamon de Valera said in an historic address to the League of Nations, "if we want justice for ourselves, we must stand for justice for others". I am determined that we will engage more actively with other countries in building a better, fairer and a more sustainable world. We will help poorer nations striving in the most difficult circumstances to make a success of their freedom.
It is horrifying to see a ward of young children dying of AIDS, as I did recently in South Africa. I believe that, working with our colleagues in Europe, we must do more to combat this deadly epidemic. I am personally committed to increase the money we spend on Third World development to help people who are suffering due to natural disasters, famine or war. And I will ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs to bring forward a multi-annual plan to expand our support so that we fulfil our responsibility to al leviate poverty, support self-help and reduce the crushing burden of Third World debt.
Historic role and responsibility of Fianna Fail moving forward
Our party, Fianna Fail, whom I am proud and honoured once more to address as Uachtaran and as Taoiseach, has been entrusted by the people to guide Ireland's destiny. We are the republican party. We are committed to a strong Irish democracy based on equal rights, equal opportunity and equal treatment and with maximum participation by all of our people.
We stand for social justice and inclusion and for a caring and tolerant society. Where we have fallen short, we are determined to succeed. We in Fianna Fail have many reasons to be proud of our contribution to our country, but are acutely conscious of the challenges before us.
Partnership with the Progressive Democrats moving forward
We will push forward on all fronts, providing effective and energetic government, working in proven partnership with the Progressive Democrats. We have fuelled a powerful economic engine, which we can steer towards a fairer and more balanced society, in which we all will have a place and a part.
Salute to Jack Lynch
This party that was founded by Eamon de Valera is totally committed to good governance. The pride that we have in his example and his great achievements will be marked from this year on by an annual de Valera commemoration in Ennis organised by his family and with full Fianna Fail support. We also remember this year the late Jack Lynch, a leader whose integrity and innate decency will always be deeply treasured. We send our heartfelt best wishes and gratitude to his widow, Mairin.
Ar dheis laimh De go raibh a anam fioruasal agus go gcana se i measc na n-aingeal go deo. Ba Ghiolla Mear i gconai e.
Ethics and good government
Confidence in the integrity of our institutions is vital to the future prosperity, security and cohesion of this society. Unfortunately, at times that confidence has been damaged, and it must be restored. We, with others, have a great obligation to do that.
Undesirable practices, undisclosed conflicts of interest, abuses and illegal acts including misappropriation, corruption or tax evasion, where there is real evidence that they have taken place, must be thoroughly investigated and pursued. We must make sure, to the limits of our power, that they do not happen again.
Transparency - freedom of information
The public are entitled to know how they are governed. We are the first Government to function under the full Freedom of Information legislation. We need through public education to encourage a civic spirit amongst our whole population. Fianna Fail is the largest political party, and must lead by example. We all benefit from publicly provided services, and we are therefore morally bound to contribute to their support, in accordance with our means and with the law that protects all of us.
As a party, we are the first to have developed our own code of ethics and, as a government, we are establishing an ethics commission by law to watch over our democratic institutions.
Strength of the economy
We have sustained extraordinary economic growth at 7.5 per cent for the sixth year running with no real sign of a slowdown. In 10 years, we have reduced the debt from 93 per cent to 46 per cent of national income, from one of the highest in Europe to one of the lowest. Our exports of goods and services have grown fourfold from £16 billion 10 years ago to an estimated £64 billion this year. We are on course for building 50,000 houses this year, where the previous peak back in 1981 was 29,000.
Employment
Over the past decade, we have by far the best record of creating jobs of any country in the Western world. Ten years ago, most people predicted we would never see full employment again. Yet, now we are on the threshold of it, an historic triumph for our country. We have generated new jobs for half a million more people. Since coming to office, we have halved unemployment from 10 per cent to 5 per cent. Fianna Fail promised in the last election to target unemployment, and we have done it.
Breaking the cycle
Now we have moved on to help the people and communities still experiencing chronic long-term unemployment. We are deter mined to bring them into the widening circle of our prosperity. Fianna Fail in government is undertaking a comprehensive drive to build up resources in our poorest communities to make sure that young people do not get drawn into drugs or crime - and that they have places to go that provide the opportunity to break the cycle of poverty.
We will keep on upgrading the skills of our people, so that we can fill the good jobs available for people at home and for any Irish person abroad who wishes to return. The number of jobs and choices now available is, in historic terms, the Irish economic miracle. It is a miracle we are determined to spread to every section of our society and every region.
Immigration and the labour force
Like other countries that have grown rapidly, we have to recruit a larger workforce than our own resident population can provide. We welcome every contribution, and our vision of Ireland is of an open, tolerant and welcoming society, not only pluralist but multicultural. We are putting in place a humane and well-ordered system for looking after asylum-seekers, while their applications are being processed. Racism has no place in our society.
Social partnership
We are raising the economy's speed limit. We have developed a dynamic economic model of our own, based on social cohesion, membership of the euro and enthusiastic participation in the global economy. But, while allowing earnings to reflect more of the gains in productivity, we have to keep firm control so that we do not undermine our competitive position.
There has been a rise in average living standards by over a third since Fianna Fail reinvigorated the economy in the late 1980s, through a combination of real wage increases and tax cuts. The new Programme for Prosperity and Fairness is a further milestone in the history of social partnership. It brings the voluntary and community sector for the first time fully into the partnership process. I wish to compliment each one of the partners for the part that they have played in constructing this programme.