Catherine Feore
Catherine Feore's Latest Posts
#Brexit – Signed, sealed, and not quite delivered
This morning (24 January), European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Charles Michel signed the Agreement on the Withdrawal of the UK in Brussels, writes Catherine Feore. The European Parliament’s plenary will hold a vote on the agreement on 29 January. Once the European Parliament has given its consent, the Council […]
EU-27 heads of government endorse the #BrexitDeal
The European Council endorsed the newly minted Brexit deal. President of the European Council Donald Tusk said that it looked like the agreement was close to its final stretch, writes Catherine Feore. Tusk explained why a deal that was impossible yesterday, had become possible today. Standing beside Irish Taoiseach Leo Varadkar he said that Ireland had […]
#Trade – Hogan faces strong headwinds in new role
Irish Commissioner Phil Hogan (pictured, right), a stalwart supporter of Irish Prime Minister (Taoiseach) Leo Varadkar, is promoted to the role of European trade commissioner in the new mandate. One of the most high-profile positions in the EU, Hogan steps up to the plate at a time when the United States is pursuing an unpredictable, […]
#EuropeanCommission – von der Leyen presents list of new commissioners
European Commission President Juncker meets President-elect Ursula von der Leyen President-elect Ursula von der Leyen today (9 September) formally presented her draft list of commissioners-designate, however, Commission watchers will have to wait until tomorrow to find out the portfolio of each one, writes Catherine Feore. Although politically neutral, Commissioners reflect the political balance of the EU. […]
#ECA – Auditors give a qualified thumbs up to the Commission’s public consultations
The European Court of Auditors (ECA) has released a broadly positive report on the European Commission’s consultative processes. The report, led by Annemie Turtelboom, makes a number of recommendations on where the process could be improved, in particular in relation to reaching out to citizens, writes Catherine Feore. “Citizen engagement in public consultations is key to maintaining the […]
Major engagement initiative to be launched in first three months of new #Commission
The European Commission intends to launch an EU-wide campaign of engagement with citizens to present its political priorities in its ‘first hundred days’ of office, writes Catherine Feore. In a draft document outlining the European Commission’s priorities, the next Commission will agree on what they describe as a ‘joint narrative’ at their first college seminar, which […]
#Brexit – A proposal to leave Ireland’s border to future negotiations ‘just won’t fly’ says Coveney
Arriving for the Informal (Gymnich) meeting of Foreign Ministers on 30 August, Irish Tánaiste Simon Coveney said that he would be happy for the UK to meet the EU five days a week if necessary, in response to a question about the UK’s announcement that it would be negotiating two days per week in Brussels, […]