European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has set out priorities for the Irish Presidency of the Council of the EU during a visit to Cork with Taoiseach Micheál Martin, including trade, defence, the next long-term EU budget, housing and EU enlargement.
Von der Leyen visited the Tyndall National Institute and its semiconductor laboratories in Cork during the trip, describing the site as a focus for moving from testing to scaling up research and innovation, she informed in a statement released on Friday.
She said the Irish Presidency would be central to getting EU trade deals with India and Mexico “operational at record speed”, alongside efforts to diversify trade and reduce reliance on single suppliers.
Von der Leyen also referenced the EU’s “One Europe, One Market” roadmap, saying the EU’s institutions had committed to deliver measures until the end of 2027.
She stated that the European Commission would table a new energy package in July, including a target to increase electrification in Europe and changes to modernise the EU’s emissions trading system — the bloc’s carbon market that requires companies in certain sectors to hold permits for their emissions.
On digital policy, she said a “Tech Sovereignty Package” would cover areas including chips, artificial intelligence, cloud services and language models.
Defence, Ukraine, housing and enlargement
Von der Leyen welcomed Ireland’s decision to increase defence spending by 55% by 2030 and said work would continue on Europe’s “Defence Readiness.”
She said loan agreements worth €100 million had been signed “in record time” with 10 EU member states under the SAFE programme, which she described as enabling countries to undertake joint defence projects through common procurement.
On Ukraine, she pointed out more than €3 billion in budget support had been disbursed from a €90 billion Ukraine loan, alongside a first part of €6 billion for air defence.
Turning to EU finances, von der Leyen said the Council had reached an agreement in June on the “architecture” of the next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) — the EU’s long-term budget — and that work should move towards a revised negotiation document for the October European Council so the budget can take effect from 1 January 2028.
She also noted the EU was facing a housing crisis affecting affordability, access and quality, and that the Irish Presidency would aim to launch a European Housing Alliance and convene a high-level European Housing Summit.
On enlargement, von der Leyen said Ukraine and Moldova had opened their first accession cluster — part of the EU’s step-by-step process for joining the bloc — while Albania and Montenegro continued to progress, adding that Ireland supported completing Montenegro’s accession negotiations this year.
