Legal eagle flies high (Part 1)

There has been no "easing in" of David Byrne to his new role as EU Commissioner. The feuding between France and Britain over beef has seen to that. Taking over what some regarded as a lesser brief in the commission, the new Commissioner for Health and Consumer Protection with responsibility for food safety has found himself centre-stage in Brussels, trying to negotiate a settlement between the squabbling neighbours. And on Tuesday he prompted the Commission to begin legal proceedings against France for refusing to lift its ban on British beef.

But while the beef crisis has dominated Byrne's eight weeks in his new post, there have been other issues to deal with. This week also saw him bring to the commission his proposals for a new law on the reduction of tar, nicotine and carbon monoxide levels in cigarettes, with better provisions relating to clearer warnings. And there has been his work on the banning of plastic softeners, phthalates, a material used in the manufacture of plastic toys, teething rings, rubber ducks etc. This has proved contentious in its own right.

"A previous attempt to ban this substance was unsuccessful at commission level, but I wanted to go ahead with it as the scientific advice was clear and there were obvious dangers for children under three years of age. Prolonged exposure to it could lead to liver, bladder and testicular damage. We want to ban plastic toys which are designed to be placed in a child's mouth."

The Greens, however, have argued that Byrne has not gone far enough. They want to see all plastic toys which are capable of being placed in a child's mouth banned. "What we were trying to stop was the parent leaving the soother in a child's mouth for extended periods," says Byrne. Putting a toy in the mouth occasionally, such as the rubber duck while playing in the bath, is not a danger. Part of the legislation will, however, require a warning to be placed on a toy such as the rubber duck not to be kept in the mouth, but that doesn't mean the toy is banned." Byrne is aware that some critics have tried to ridicule the moves by stating that children under three will be incapable of reading such warnings. "It is to be expected," he says, "the adults can."

Scientific evidence, not ideology, informs Byrne's opinions. When he was first appointed to this portfolio, which has a relatively small budget, it was considered a lesser brief for Ireland. However, as events such as the beef crisis have already proved, the Health, Food Safety and Consumer Protection portfolio is emerging as one of the most significant, particularly as commission president Prodi wants the commission to mean more to the citizens. As Byrne sees it: "In my first meeting with Romano Prodi in July, he made it clear that he wanted the commission to become more accessible to the citizens of the member states."

Byrne is also aware that for so long - too long - the traditional Irish view of the union, through its various manifestations of Common Market, European Community and now European Union, has tended to be, "how much money can we get from it?"

"We have had the benefits of the transfer of funds from the EU, and such benefits will continue to come for some time yet, but Ireland is now in a very different situation. We have a sound, developing economy, and the EU now provides a huge market for the export of Irish goods and services. This indicates benefits of the union in being able to export our commodities. Ireland was a recipient; now we are exporting our goods and services. Ireland is becoming prosperous not through grants but through the sale of its goods and services."

Speculation that Byrne, previously the Irish attorney general, would be nominated for a European post began about April of this year in the wake of the resignation of the previous commission. A few names were mentioned; Byrne's seemed to ebb and flow, creating an impression that he was either making up his mind or that the Government had not decided who it would nominate.

In the context of Irish public life, David Byrne would appear an unusually quiet, non-eccentric character. Bearing the faintest of physical resemblances to a younger, less tormented Jimmy Carter, Byrne, a 52-year-old father of three, is a compact, efficient-looking individual who gives the impression of living in complete order and of feeling relaxed about it. Satirists and sketch writers would be hard pressed to find any characteristic to lampoon. He is about as solid and respectable a safe pair of hands as any political party - particularly one as stormtossed as Fianna Fail currently is - would hope to send into the fray.

His 27-year career to date at the Bar, which has included a seven-year stint as a member of the International Court of Arbitration, has been as careful and deliberate as he is. No one could accuse him of being crazed by ambition; if he is driven, he conceals it well.

"I have ambitions but I have never been obsessed. I'm interested in my work." There was no race to take silk; he waited 15 years. While many of his colleagues favour theatrical behaviour and adopt Baroque accents, Byrne is plain spoken and, if his Midland tones are modified, he certainly has not lost them. He agrees he is by temperament more of a realist than an idealist.

"I'm practical; I propose to make decisions in Europe based on sound scientific fact and information." He says he assembled his immediate team of six from a body of civil servants with a proven record, while his directorate general is composed of about 750 EU career civil servants.

A beef tribunal veteran, he has extensive experience as an international arbitrator and has often appeared before the European Court of Justice on community law-related cases. As a student he was aware there was no free legal aid in civil cases available in the Republic and in 1969, he, along with Judge Lavin, Denis McCullough SC and Ian Candy, now a judge in Hong Kong, helped found the Free Legal Advice Centres, FLAC. They also lobbied for the provision of a State-funded legal aid scheme, which FLAC and others ultimately succeeded in achieving.

One of two sons born to a shopkeeper in Monasterevin, Co Kildare in 1947, Byrne has no legal tradition to draw on. His parents had been a bit wary of his studying law, he says, "as we had no connections and they were worried in case I would find it a drawback". His father's shop sold everything, "from groceries to bikes and motorbikes. If you needed anything, my father could get it." Byrne says he took growing up in a small country town, "as did most young lads like me" for granted. "It's only now I drive through places like Monasterevin and see the richness of the architecture and the sense of history they have; as a kid I'm afraid I didn't notice it."

The family was not strongly political, although Fianna Fail was always the party. "I remember being told that my father had driven Sean Lemass to a meeting in Co Carlow in 1932. It was an exciting time; Fianna Fail had had its first election victory. There had been a meeting in the town and Lemass was then on his way to another in Carlow. The question arose of who would drive him. My father did. There weren't all that many cars in Co Kildare at the time." As for his involvement he says: "I probably always regarded it as the most effective party." The young Byrne describes himself as being "good enough in class". Sport didn't mean much to him although he now plays "a bit of golf" and also sails.