{"id":554055,"date":"2026-07-17T08:14:13","date_gmt":"2026-07-17T08:14:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/554055\/"},"modified":"2026-07-17T08:14:13","modified_gmt":"2026-07-17T08:14:13","slug":"irelands-european-moment-council-of-eu-presidency-offers-influence-at-key-juncture-the-irish-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/554055\/","title":{"rendered":"Ireland\u2019s European moment: Council of EU presidency offers influence at key juncture \u2013 The Irish Times"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ireland\u2019s presidency of the Council of the European Union<\/a> provides the State with a unique opportunity to shape the key reforms that could strengthen the institution in the years ahead. The lengthy agenda of work for Irish Ministers and civil servants in securing legislative and policy agreements between the bloc over the next six months is set against the background of rising global economic and geopolitical threats. With the stakes high, the Government has set out the three key pillars of competitiveness, values and security.<\/p>\n

Expectations of Ireland are high. This is our eighth presidency, and our membership since 1973 makes us one of the more experienced members of the EU. The enormous knowledge and corporate memory within our Civil Service, which is generally very well regarded in Europe, will be a key asset. <\/p>\n

Bobby McDonagh, a veteran senior Irish diplomat who has played a key role in previous presidencies, says Ireland\u2019s compact size allows for easy communication across departments, and that Ministers being native English speakers aids \u201cin humour, precise drafting and quick communication\u201d with a wide range of stakeholders. \u201cWe\u2019re flexible, we get on with people, which is essential in dealing with the Council secretariat and other member states.\u201d <\/p>\n

While Ireland can\u2019t overtly advance national interests in this term, we can legitimately decide when to table items for discussion, determine what issues meetings should focus on, frame what options to consider, and suggest where compromises may lie, he notes. <\/p>\n

\u201cA successful presidency will enhance Ireland\u2019s reputation well beyond the six-month term, benefiting the country for years in EU negotiations. Ireland can shape options and compromises that aren\u2019t negative from an Irish point of view. The key is that advancing European interests and Irish interests aren\u2019t contradictory \u2013 Irish interests include a strong European dimension.\u201d <\/p>\n

\"VeteranVeteran Irish diplomat Bobby McDonagh: ‘A successful presidency will enhance Ireland\u2019s reputation well beyond the six-month term, benefiting the country for years in EU negotiations.’ <\/p>\n

So, what does success look like? <\/p>\n

\u201cIt won\u2019t be a mathematical calculation of the number of outcomes, it will be about how Ireland manages negotiations, how EU members view our performance, and how it is assessed by media both in Ireland and the rest of the EU. Clearly, however, the more compromises we can find, the more pieces of legislation we can put through, the better.\u201d <\/p>\n

Ireland takes on the presidency at a moment when Europe cannot afford to be slow, notes Darren Maher, managing partner at law firm Matheson.\u202fTrade is being weaponised, supply chains are being redrawn, and competitive pressure from the United States and Asia has sharpened considerably. While the Government\u2019s framing in terms of competitiveness is good, the harder question is whether this presidency can convert ambition into something businesses can actually feel, he says. <\/p>\n

\"DarrenDarren Maher, managing partner at law firm Matheson: Ireland takes on the presidency at a moment when Europe cannot afford to be slow. <\/p>\n

\u201cFor Irish business, and for the many international companies that use Ireland as their European base, the presidency matters beyond symbolism. When Irish Ministers chair Council meetings, Irish officials shape agendas, and the Taoiseach engages directly with counterparts across the EU, Ireland\u2019s proximity to the centre of decision-making is real.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are already seeing that in the questions clients are asking: where is regulatory direction heading, how will the multi-annual financial framework (MFF) negotiations unfold, and what does that mean for investment decisions being made now? The presidency does not give Ireland a veto or unlimited influence, but it does place Ireland closer to where compromises are struck, and that matters.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u2018The competitiveness agenda comes down to practical outcomes: whether businesses can scale more easily, whether capital moves efficiently, and whether Europe remains a credible place to build and invest\u2019<\/p>\n

\u2014 \u00a0Darren Maher, Matheson<\/p>\n

The negotiations on the next MFF, covering 2028 to 2034, will be the hardest test, he says. The European Commission\u2019s proposal, published in July 2025, reflects a shift in emphasis towards competitiveness, defence and security, while maintaining support for agriculture and cohesion. <\/p>\n

Two camps have already formed, Maher notes. A fiscally conservative group of Germany, Sweden, Austria and the Netherlands is pushing for a tighter envelope, while a larger coalition including Italy, Spain and Poland is resisting any reduction in ambition. <\/p>\n

\u201cIreland\u2019s role is to sit between those positions as an honest broker. It has been clear about that \u2013 including declining invitations to align with net contributor groupings ahead of key negotiations. That instinct will need to hold.\u201d <\/p>\n

There is general agreement, however, on the issue of improving the EU\u2019s competitiveness and tackling excess bureaucracy \u2013 areas Ireland will be looking to make an impact on during its presidency. <\/p>\n

\"EmmaEmma Richardson, researcher at the Institute of International and European Affairs <\/p>\n

\u201cIf you had mentioned competitiveness and simplicity three years ago, you would have been received with blank faces, but that is a huge focus of the current Commission,\u201d says Emma Richardson, researcher at the Institute of International and European Affairs (IIEA). She says there has been a tendency to conflate simplification with deregulation. <\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s an important distinction. We\u2019re talking about reducing administrative burdens and making things more aligned across Europe,\u201d she explains, noting the commitment by the Commission to reduce \u20ac37.5 billion in administrative burdens across the EU during their legislative period. This will involve consolidating overlapping regulations and reducing paperwork for business. <\/p>\n

Maher agrees this is area where Ireland can have a measurable impact during the presidency. \u201cIreland has committed to treating the One Europe, One Market Roadmap as a core priority,\u201d he says.\u202f\u201cThe competitiveness agenda comes down to practical outcomes: whether businesses can scale more easily, whether capital moves efficiently, and whether Europe remains a credible place to build and invest.\u201d <\/p>\n

\"NeilNeil Willoughby, head of EU policy, Ibec: While there is broad agreement on the need to enhance competitiveness, implementation is not happening quickly enough. <\/p>\n

Neil Willoughby, head of EU policy at business lobby group Ibec, says while there is broad agreement on the need to enhance competitiveness, implementation is not happening quickly enough, with real impacts not being felt on the ground. Nonetheless, progress has been made in some areas, he acknowledges, including the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), where medium-sized companies were removed from scope. Businesses are now looking for similar progress on digital and environmental regulation. <\/p>\n

He also welcomes the fact that security and defence will play a major part in this presidency, and that Ireland is now increasingly part of this conversation, as rising energy costs and the risk of cyber-attacks are direct consequences for businesses and citizens. <\/p>\n

As many commentators readily acknowledge, Ireland has prepared well for its presidency and expectations are high \u2013 but even the best-laid plans can be derailed by unexpected events. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Ireland\u2019s presidency of the Council of the European Union provides the State with a unique opportunity to shape…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":554056,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[61,60,234417,43],"class_list":["post-554055","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-ireland","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-ireland-in-europe-special-report","tag-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/554055","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=554055"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/554055\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/554056"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=554055"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=554055"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=554055"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}