Stephen Donnelly
Ceist:226. Deputy Stephen S. Donnelly asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he will report on Ireland's bid to host the European Banking Authority. [50045/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraTuesday, 28 November 2017
Ceisteanna (226)
Freagraí scríofa
The decision on the relocation of the European Banking Authority was made at the General Affairs Council meeting in Brussels on Monday 20 November. Ireland, along with 7 other Member States presented bids to host the EBA on its relocation from the UK, in the context of Brexit. After three rounds round of voting, Dublin and Paris were tied with 13 votes each. The selection of Paris was made by the drawing of lots, in line with the procedure set out in advance of the vote. The Irish Government made a very strong offer for the EBA to be located in Dublin. I wish to acknowledge the work carried out across government departments and agencies on our bid, which was well-received around Europe and viewed as strong and very competitive. It was a very considerable achievement to have won through 3 rounds of voting, successfully out performing very strong bids from a number of other key EU cities and capitals.
Minister Harris, the Department of Health and relevant agencies also put together a very comprehensive offer which was recognised around Europe as a very compelling case that Dublin could host the European Medicines Agency (EMA).
The competitive and political nature of the selection process necessitated a whole-of-Government effort to ensure that Ireland’s case was put forward strongly and convincingly to Member State Governments and to elicit support in the voting process.
That is why we made a strategic decision some weeks ago to focus our efforts on gaining support for our EBA bid. By focusing on just one offer, we were able to be clear in our goal and it allowed us to engage in a more definitive manner in seeking the support of our partners in the EU.
I would like to congratulate Paris on being chosen as the new seat of the EBA. It is important that there is a smooth transition and successful relocation for the Authority, its staff and their families.
The EBA plays a vital role in the European system of Financial Supervision and it is essential that its work, which helps to protect consumers and contributes to the Union’s financial stability, continues during the transition. The Central Bank of Ireland is an active member of the EBA and will continue to work with the Authority to achieve high quality prudential regulation and supervision across the banking sector.