Ruairí Ó Murchú
Question:875. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the engagements he has had in relation to the Conference on the Future of Europe; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41018/21]
View answerTuesday, 27 July 2021
Questions (875)
Written answers
The Conference on the Future of Europe (COFOE) is a series of conferences aimed at promoting greater citizen involvement in the European Union and engendering reflection on Europe’s future direction. My Department is the lead Department for the Conference and Minister of State Byrne has been assigned lead responsibility within Government for Ireland’s participation in the Conference. The inaugural EU event of the Conference took place on Europe Day (9 May) in Strasbourg. Minister of State Byrne attended that launch event virtually.
Ireland ‘s national launch event took place virtually on 14 May and included contributions by An Taoiseach, Minister of State Byrne, EU Commissioner Mairead McGuinness and myself. The EU Ombudsman, Emily O Reilly also took part in a panel discussion with Minister of State Byrne. This was a Government of Ireland event organised in partnership with European Movement Ireland. Youth participants also featured in the launch event, reflecting the Conference’s emphasis on engaging young people. The event has currently been viewed online over 1,200 times.
The inaugural plenary for the Conference was held on 19 June in Strasbourg and was attended virtually by Ministers of State Byrne and Josepha Madigan. Its agenda was broadly constitutive focusing on the Conference’s overall purposes and future calendar of events. I will participate in at least one future Plenary meeting, in accordance with our practice of deciding the second Ministerial representative at Plenary meetings on the basis of the subject matter being discussed.
Ireland’s national programme of events is also now underway. My Department is working closely with European Movement Ireland (EMI) on the Conference, continuing on collaboration from the earlier Citizens’ Dialogue on the Future of Europe which took place in 2018. EMI has already hosted a series of regional events online over the last number of weeks in Leinster, Munster and Connacht-Ulster. Minister of State Byrne has addressed each of these seminars. My Department is also planning to collaborate with the Institute of International and European Affairs (IIEA) on the Conference. A programme of events for later in the year to be informed by Conference’s nine core themes is currently in planning.
The national programme also includes Government-led events where Minister of State Byrne engages with smaller groups of citizens in virtual discussions. The first set of these events took place over the last number of weeks and included sessions with representatives of the LGBTQI community, Comhairle na nÓg (a joint event with Minister Roderic O’Gorman), participants of Gaisce - The President’s Award and the New Irish communities. A second round of these smaller consultations will resume in the autumn.
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