THE PERM REP & THE TREATY

The media are currently drawing our attention to the signing of the Anglo-Irish Treaty of 1921, particularly in the light of current commemorations during the decade of centenaries.

The Irish delegation was between a rock and a hard place. They had negotiated what they thought was the best deal they could get, even if it fell short of their expectations and of those who had fought for Irish independence, particularly since the 1916 Rising.

They were threatened with immediate and terrible war if they did not sign and they did not think it worth the risk to call out the British on this at that time. They did not know if the British threat was bluff and, in any event, the limited but significant form of independence in the Treaty might be used in the future to lay claim to further degrees of independence. So they signed.

These thoughts were running through my head this morning during my daily 6km morning mental health walk along the coast of Dublin Bay.

But what provoked them was a more modern context, Irish representation within the European Union.

Our "ambassador" to the EU is known as the Permanent Representative and with colleagues from the other Member States, he attends meetings known as COREPER which prepare legislation and other matters for the Council of Ministers. The Council, along with the European Parliament, is the Union's legislative body.

Generally speaking, the Perm Rep will have kept the home front up to date on what is happening and will have, in turn, got adequate instructions for the meetings. But, there will be times when s/he has to take a flier and this is at the heart of the job.

The Perm Rep may find themselves in a position of having to take a position in the face of a deadline and without adequate time for full consultation with the home front. The considerations in play will be signalling Ireland's agreement to some compromise which allows the matter to advance to the next stage, but judging that they can sell this compromise to the home front when push comes to shove. This requires a lot of knowledge, skill, and very fine judgement.

My own familiarity with this process is one level down the chain - the Working Party of Financial Counsellors. This group deals with legislation in the field of economic policy. It meets at deputies level and prepares for the Economic and Financial Affairs Council (Ecofin).

The Department of Finance has its own rep at Principal Officer level and these Counsellors form a sort of a club. The Counsellors have to be able to trust one another when they make commitments and each individual Counsellor has to be sure that what he is commiting to can be sold at home. Again a very fine judgement as specific instructions are not always available and in a dynamic discussion you never know what you are going to be faced with and you cannot, in the face of deadlines, be continuously slowing matters up while you consult Dublin.

Clearly, the implication of the above is that it is vitally important who is sent to the Permanent Representation at "ambassador" or principal officer level.

Spare a thought, from time to time, for their dilemmas.

Anyway this is what provoked my thinking of the Irish plenipotentiaries in 1921, a hundred years ago.