Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I attended a meeting of the European Council on 23 and 24 March in Brussels. The agenda covered Ukraine; competitiveness; the Single Market and the economy; energy; and external relations. In his contribution to today’s debate, the Minister of State, Deputy Peter Burke, will provide further detail on some of the external relations issues discussed, including Serbia-Kosovo relations, the ongoing impact of the terrible earthquakes in Türkiye and Syria in February, and the external aspects of migration. I will cover all other issues.

In advance of our meeting, members of the European Council met with United Nations Secretary General António Guterres. In our meeting with him, we discussed the impact on global food security of the Russian blockade of Ukrainian ports. We also discussed climate action and the need to restore momentum towards achieving the sustainable development goals. The European Council was joined by video for part of our meeting by the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy. We reiterated our unwavering support for his country. In particular, we called for accountability for the perpetrators, a stop to Russian aggression, respect for international humanitarian law, with particular regard to prisoners of war, and the safe return of Ukrainian children removed to Russia illegally, which is one of the most appalling aspects of the war. To think that children could be taken from their parents, deported to Russia and trained to become Russian is shocking. We also condemned the role being played by Belarus and Iran in supporting the war. We also discussed our ongoing political, military, humanitarian and financial support for Ukraine. The European Council invited the European Commission to present a support package to Moldova, one of the countries most directly and adversely impacted by Russia's war, ahead of its next meeting.

At our meeting last month, we returned to economic issues, picking up on our discussion in early February. Our particular focus on this occasion was on ensuring the EU's long-term competitiveness and the further deepening of the Single Market. There was broad welcome for the two significant proposals produced by the Commission on 16 March, namely, the Single Market at 30 and long-term competitiveness of the EU: looking beyond 2030. The Commission has rightly identified that further reduction of barriers, especially for services, is essential for the Single Market to remain the primary driver of the EU's competitiveness and growth. For this to happen there needs to be a renewed focus on enforcing existing Single Market rules, including benchmarking deficits in transposition of laws and in implementation, and on removing unjustified trade barriers in the services sector markets with the greatest integration potential. These include retail, construction, tourism, business services and renewable energy.

The Commission has also identified nine mutually reinforcing factors that can increase investment. These include access to capital; public investment; research and innovation; energy; circularity; digitalisation; education and skills; and trade. I particularly welcome the Commission's focus on better regulation, including the need for regular assessment of the stock of EU legislation, including its cumulative impact, rationalisation of reporting requirements and ensuring an overall approach to market rules and standards that is innovation friendly. Ahead of the meeting, I co-signed a letter to President Michel with ten like-minded member states calling for a long-term strategy to strengthen Europe’s competitiveness and global influence.

Shorter-term measures being advanced under the green deal industrial plan are important but Europe’s long-term strategy for future prosperity must be based on our economic strengths and on ensuring the right market conditions exist for investment and entrepreneurship in the decades ahead. This includes stronger mobilisation of public and private resources through the European research and innovation system, aligned with deeper capital markets to finance the fast-growing firms at the technological frontier of the twin green and digital transitions. We want to see this complemented by an open and ambitious trade policy based on high levels of co-operation with trusted partners so that we can advance global prosperity while protecting the multilateral rules-based system and defending against unfair trading practices. We should also see the Single Market, and the level playing field between the member states on which it is built, as a driver of 21st century standards, particularly social and environmental standards. These strategic orientations are reflected strongly in the March European Council conclusions.

Leaders also called for work to be taken forward on the legislative proposals that have been presented by the Commission under the green deal industrial plan and noted the Commission's adoption of a temporary crisis and transition framework for state aid. The proposed net zero industry Act will establish a framework of measures to strengthen Europe’s manufacturing ecosystem for net-zero technology. The proposed European critical raw materials Act will establish a framework to strengthen supply chains in critical and strategically important raw materials, factoring in their development, sustainability and circularity. This includes the goal of not being reliant on any single third country for more than two thirds of the Union's annual consumption of any specific raw material that is deemed strategically important to decarbonisation objectives. The Council’s work over the coming months to strike the right balance on these proposals, which span the responsibilities of different ministers and Council formations, will be guided by the strategic orientations agreed at the March meeting of the European Council.

The March European Council also endorsed the policy priorities presented by the Commission in the annual sustainable growth survey, and invited member states to reflect them in their national reform programmes and stability programme updates. These fall for submission to the Commission this month and will inform the Commission's proposals in May for country-specific recommendations under European semester 2023. The four dimensions of competitive sustainability highlighted by the Commission are productivity, environmental sustainability, fairness and macroeconomic stability. Leaders agreed that they continue to provide the right political emphasis to guide the economic policy of the Union and its member states at this time.

The March European Council also endorsed the ECOFIN conclusions on the economic governance review agreed by finance Ministers on 14 March. These conclusions highlight areas of convergence of views among member states, as well areas where further work in the Council is needed ahead of presentation by the Commission of formal legislative proposals. Ireland supports the goal of a reformed economic governance framework that is simple and more transparent, with greater national ownership guiding more effective implementation through necessary public investment in strategic objectives.

Heads of government and state also met in euro summit format to take stock of economic and financial developments, informed by contributions from the president of the European Central Bank, Christine Lagarde, and the president of the Eurogroup, the Minister, Deputy Donohoe. We acknowledged the importance of the economic governance framework in the architecture of the Economic and Monetary Union in securing the stability of the euro and the resilience of the euro area economy. We called for further progress on the capital markets union, with a view to mobilising investment at scale for the green and digital transition. We also called for continued efforts to complete our banking union, which is already strengthening the resilience of the EU banking system.

At the European Council, leaders discussed energy issues and took stock of the significant progress that has been made phasing out EU dependence on Russian fossil fuels.

There was a renewed focus, including through Europe's REPowerEU plan, on investment in innovation, interconnection, efficiency and renewables. These resolute actions have served to underpin security of supply, reduce energy usage and mitigate the effects of dramatic price increases seen by businesses and consumers.

Leaders also discussed preparation for winter 2023-24, with a particular emphasis on making use of the joint purchase of gas when refilling gas storage facilities. Leaders also discussed the importance of investment in energy supply grids for renewable energy distribution. The European Council called for work to be taken forward swiftly on the proposed revision of the EU's internal electricity market design, which is intended to make the market fully fit for a decarbonised energy system and facilitate the uptake of renewable energy.

Finally, at the European Council, leaders welcomed the agreement on the Windsor Framework and looked forward to the swift implementation of all agreed solutions in good faith. As the House will be aware, the framework has now been formally adopted by both the European Union and the United Kingdom. As I have said previously, I believe that agreement on the framework opens up significant economic opportunities for people and businesses in Northern Ireland. It also has the potential to open a new chapter in EU-UK relations, one in which the focus is on partnership and on the significant areas of shared interest and concern. We now need to see the institutions under the Good Friday Agreement restored, so that the people of Northern Ireland can have a devolved government in place dealing with the problems they face.

It is intended that I should travel to Brussels on 29 and 30 June for the next regular meeting of the European Council when leaders will again discuss developments in Ukraine, the economy, security and defence and preparation of the EU-Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, CELAC, summit which will to take place in Brussels on 17 and 18 July.

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