Minister Creighton to underline importance to Europe of agreement with European Parliament on MFF

The Irish Presidency will participate in the keynote debate on preparations for the 14-15 March European Council, which will be followed by a plenary vote setting out the European Parliament’s position on February’s European Council decision on the MFF.

At this week’s European Parliament Plenary session in Strasbourg, Minister of State for European Affairs, Lucinda Creighton TD, will participate in the keynote debate on preparations for the 14-15 March European Council which will focus on implementing priorities already agreed at EU level to ensure a return to economic growth, competitiveness and enhanced economic governance.

Following the debate, the European Parliament will set out its position on the Multi-annual Financial Framework 2014-2020 (MFF) by voting on the agreement reached at February’s European Council on the MFF. The Irish Presidency will lead negotiations on the MFF with the European Parliament on behalf of the Council over the coming months.

The Minister of State will highlight the importance of timely agreement with the Parliament on the MFF to support recovery and job creation in the EU and to deliver on critically important programmes in areas such as research and innovation, youth unemployment, cohesion policy and the Common Agricultural Policy. The Minister will stress the Irish Presidency’s commitment to engage in serious negotiations on the basis of February’s European Council mandate. Contacts have already begun, including at the highest levels with the recent meeting in Dublin involving the Taoiseach, the Tánaiste, and Presidents Schulz and Barroso. While in Strasbourg this week, the Minister of State will also hold a number of bilateral engagements with key MEPs on the MFF.

Minister Creighton - "Achieving agreement with the European Parliament on the MFF is the key priority of the Irish Presidency. The MFF is a vital component of the drive to secure recovery in Europe. We are already engaging closely with the Parliament and we will work intensively on the negotiations over the coming few months with the aim of achieving agreement during our Presidency."

During this third plenary session of the Irish Presidency, Minister of State Creighton will also debate with MEPs on how to strengthen the EU’s fight against racism, xenophobia and hate crime.

Read/Watch

A summary schedule of key meetings for Minister Creighton

The full schedule of this month’s EP Plenary

Watch the live EP plenary debates

Twitter

For more information, you can follow the official Irish Presidency twitter account (@eu2013ie) and the Irish Permanent Representation to the EU’s twitter account (@IrelandRepBru), which will be providing updates throughout the week.