A joint sitting of both Houses of the Oireachtas met in the Mansion House in Dublin this morning to mark the 90th anniversary of the first Dáil.
Taoiseach Brian Cowen told the joint sitting the next few years are going to be "very difficult" for everyone with major political, economic and social challenges to be faced.
“The question before us all is simple. Are we prepared to work together, in partnership, to tackle this crisis, for the benefit of our fellow citizens and of our children?” Mr Cowen told the assembled guests.
“Those who founded Dáil Éireann and who carved an independent Ireland out of the most powerful empire in the world faced daunting challenges. They succeeded. So too will we.”
The Dáil met for the first time on January 21st, 1919, in the Mansion House when its members were presented with four documents to adopt - a Constitution, a new Declaration of Independence, a message to the nations of the world and the Democratic Programme.
Today’s event was attended by former taoisigh and descendants of TDs elected to the first Dáil. Representatives of the Northern Ireland Assembly and members of the European Parliament were also been invited.
In his address, Mr Cowen spoke about the landmark Belfast Agreement, the importance of Ireland’s role in Europe and the current economic challenges.
“When, in 1998, the people of Ireland voted by a majority, and by majorities North and South, in favour of the Good Friday agreement, it was the first occasion since the general election of 1918 – the election at which the people selected the representatives who sat in the first Dáil – that the people of this island had voted on the same day on the issue of their constitutional status,” he said.
He called for a redoubling of efforts to build a prosperous, peaceful and fair society in the Republic and “without abandoning our own ideals and traditions, we must seek to better understand and accommodate the strong identification with Britain felt by many hundreds of thousands of Irish people.”
Mr Cowen said membership of the European Union placed Ireland squarely at the centre of one of world’s most influential players. He accused those who opposed its development of being “unmoved by fact, experience or progress.”
“Where we see a landscape populated with opportunity and cooperation, they see one of threat and interference,” he said.
Mr Cowen finished by saying the Government would “take action to ensure that this country has a future by making the necessary decisions” but would do its best to be fair.