Ten EU Presidency events to visit Cork

There are currently ten events planned to take place in Cork as part of Ireland’s latest tenure as President of the Council of the European Union.

Ireland will hold the Presidency between July and December this year. It is the eighth time Ireland has held the position.

While the vast majority of events will be held in Dublin, a number of unofficial events are to be held around the country, including in Cork.

The first visit to Cork comes at the start of the Presidency. Between 2-3 July, the College of Commissioners will visit Cork to discuss a range of EU policy matters. The event will conclude with a plenary session chaired by Taoiseach Micheál Martin and President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen.

At the end of July, between 22-24, Transport attachés from across the EU will be in Cork to discuss EU-funded transport projects.

Directly after this meeting, on 28 and 29 July, EU ministers responsible for fisheries will also be in Cork, for an informal meeting chaired by Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Martin Heydon.

A follow-up to this meeting will take place between 9-11 September, to discuss issues related to the EU’s Common Fisheries Policy, in advance of the publication in the autumn of the Commission’s Vision 2040 for Fisheries and Aquaculture.An event looking to further research collaboration will also be visiting Cork. The European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures (ESFRI) takes place between 22-25 September.

It seeks to increase communication among the European research community and improve collaboration across member states.On 5-6 October, the World Health Organisation (WHO) EU Summit of Mayors on Health and Climate action will visit, as part of the WHO Health Cities Network.

Also in October, between 7-9, the Technical Experts on Major-accident and Seveso Inspections (TEMSI) group will visit, to provide technical advice to the Commission on Seveso inspections.

Seveso inspections are carried out wherever large quantities of chemicals are stored or used, and are named for the 1976 Seveso Incident in Italy.

On 15 October, a meeting to discuss the EU’s response to mental health challenges, Resilient Europe, will take place, while between 4-5 November, a Strategic Energy Technology (SET) conference will discuss challenges to transforming Europe’s energy supply.

The final event to come to Cork will be between 23-25 November, when EU Water and Marine Directors will meet to discuss individual and collective policy areas on water and marine issues.

Throughout the presidency, Cork will also play host to events organised with the French Embassy, as part of an initiative by the Department of Foreign Affairs to pair every county in Ireland with an EU member state.

A full itinerary of these events is to be released by Cork City Council soon.