SINCE the coronavirus pandemic struck, Ireland and the EU have taken unprecedented
measures to protect lives and livelihoods. The EU supported national efforts to tackle the
health crisis and cushion the impact of the massive economic hit. It freed up every available
euro in its budget and used every inch of flexibility in its economic rules. This helped finance
EU safety nets of €540 billion, including the new SURE instrument, to help people stay in
work and to support hard-pressed families and businesses.
Now is the time for our European Union to look ahead and act together to repair the
damage, re-start the economy and build a better and more sustainable future for the next
generation. No country in Europe, including Ireland, can do this work alone. We must walk
the road together. To this end, the European Commission proposed on May 27 a radical and
historic € 1.85 trillion recovery plan. At its core is a €750 billion instrument, Next Generation
EU, through which the European Commission will use its strong credit rating to raise huge
funds on the financial markets and channel them to support recovery in Ireland and across
the Europe.
Ireland is in a great position to take advantage of Europe’s new plan. It will benefit directly
from the Next Generation EU grants worth almost €2 billion. Just over €1.2 billion will come
from a new Recovery and Resilience Facility offering support for investments and reforms in
relation to the green and digital transitions, and stronger economic resilience.
For rural communities across Europe, Next Generation EU contains a €15 billion boost for
the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development. For rural Ireland, compared to the
Commission’s 2018 proposal, this means an extra €354 million over the next seven years.
To help address the social and economic damage from the crisis, there will be new funding
of €132 million for Ireland from a Just Transition Fund to help people re-skill and businesses
create and develop new opportunities. Ireland is also set to benefit by €215 million under a
new REACT-EU initiative, which can help pay for employment subsidies, short time work
schemes and youth employment measures. It can also provide liquidity for cash-strapped
businesses.
Over the next few weeks, the plan will be hotly debated, and as always, Ireland will be an
influential and effective voice in this debate. As we begin to look ahead, Europe’s new and
bold plan shows that the lessons and the suffering of the past have not been forgotten. We
must all remember that this is Europe’s moment. We must rise from this crisis in a way that
addresses the greatest of all crises – climate change. And we all must work to live up to that
challenge.
By Gerard Kiely, Head of the European Commission’s Representation in Ireland.
A native of Ennis, Colin McGann has been editor of The Clare Champion since August 2020. Former editor of The Clare People, he is a journalism and communications graduate of Dublin Institute of Technology.