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Irlanda: presidência de seis meses da UE em destaque em The Ring
No episódio desta semana de “The Ring”, o debate semanal da Euronews, viajamos à Irlanda, que assumiu a presidência rotativa do Conselho da UE, para saber o que preocupa os políticos à noite.
LEIA MAIS : http://pt.euronews.com/2026/07/23/irlanda-presidencia-de-seis-meses-da-ue-em-destaque-em-the-ring
Subscreva, euronews está disponível em 12 línguas.
No episódio desta semana de “The Ring”, o debate semanal da Euronews, viajamos à Irlanda, que assumiu a presidência rotativa do Conselho da UE, para saber o que preocupa os políticos à noite.
LEIA MAIS : http://pt.euronews.com/2026/07/23/irlanda-presidencia-de-seis-meses-da-ue-em-destaque-em-the-ring
Subscreva, euronews está disponível em 12 línguas.
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NotíciasTranscrição
00:11MADE MCMAHAN
00:32MADE MCMAHAN
00:43An EU member since 1973, Ireland is now in the spotlight as it takes on the presidency
00:49of the Council of the EU for the next six months.
00:53With an ongoing war in Ukraine, pressure to finalize the EU's long-term budget and growing
00:58demands for greater technological and energy independence, how will Ireland succeed?
01:05Ireland has built a thriving economic model around attracting major US tech companies.
01:10But now it will have to help steer discussions on European digital sovereignty and on reducing
01:15strategic dependencies.
01:18Europe is also under pressure to strengthen its defense capabilities.
01:22But Ireland's military neutrality and decision not to join NATO could make this one of the
01:27most sensitive issues of its presidency.
01:31Can a small country like Ireland make a big impact?
01:34And can it turn six months in the spotlight into lasting influence?
01:41Some of the questions we have for our contenders.
01:44Let's meet them.
01:47Neil Richmond, Ireland's Minister of State for International Development and Diaspora.
01:52He represents the central-right Fine Gael, a member of the European People's Party.
01:56One of his party's most outspoken pro-European voices, he built his reputation on Brexit and
02:01EU affairs.
02:02He is firmly pro-business and pro-European and has repeatedly challenged Ireland's long-standing
02:07policy of military neutrality, once describing it as morally degenerate in the context of Russia's
02:13war against Ukraine.
02:15Rose Conway Walsh, a far-left Sinn Féin Doyle deputy representing the Mayo constituency,
02:21a prominent advocate for increased public spending and regional development.
02:25She is a supporter of Irish unity and a vocal critic of what she sees as years of underinvestment.
02:30She has also challenged the government by arguing that Ireland must strike a balance between
02:34protecting strategic industries and jobs while remaining firm in its international commitments.
02:41Neil Richmond and Rose Conway Walsh, welcome to The Ring.
02:45Thank you.
02:46So, as you can see, Ireland is in the spotlight.
02:49Will this be a chance for the country to shine, or is it just really keeping the show on the
02:52road, Neil?
02:54Hopefully it is an opportunity to show off the best of Ireland, but there's a lot of work
02:57to be done.
02:58And making sure that we get through this six-month period as the honest broker, progressing the
03:02European agenda, it's really important.
03:04Your view on that?
03:05I think it's really important for us to have the EU presidency. It only comes around every
03:1013 years or so. So this is a real opportunity for us to show what the real values of the
03:15Irish nation are. And I think peace has to be central to that. But also equality. We're
03:20very conscious of so many people being left behind in the EU. We want to make this EU very
03:25relevant for the EU population as a whole.
03:28What would be a successful presidency? Should it be focusing on EU enlargement, the budget?
03:33What do you think?
03:34I think there's two really big issues. Firstly, it is the budget. It is the key part of the
03:39negotiating of the multi-annual financial framework where we need to get that level of compromise,
03:43that level of agreement. It's vital. But secondly, there's an ongoing legislative push that Ireland
03:47has been behind in terms of the Omnidus package on simplification. We've heard what Lecha
03:52has said. We've heard what Draghi has said. Now we actually have the legislative tools to push
03:56them along. If we get those two big achievements moved along by December, I'll be very happy.
04:01And you mentioned Mario Draghi. He's, of course, meeting Ursula von der Leyen this week for talks.
04:04But let's go back to the launch of the presidency, which took place earlier this month, of course,
04:09with President Zelenskyy of Ukraine. He was here. We've also seen the EU foreign chief,
04:13Kaya Callas, come into town as well. But slightly coinciding with the launch of the presidency,
04:18Rose Conway Walsh, was the whole Organise Lumina scandal or investigation, if you like.
04:23A refinery in Limerick that was allegedly helping to fuel Putin's war in Ukraine. Now there is an
04:30investigation that's come out by auditors saying that sanctions have not been breached here. But
04:35has this been embarrassing for Ireland? No, I don't think so. I think we're
04:39waiting for the report to come out. Whatever that report says, I think it's very important that the
04:44Irish government respond to that. But there's also a role for the EU to play in it. It is important
04:50that,
04:50that obviously companies here, that we have an ecosystem that upholds international law and human
04:57rights. And at the same time, it's very important that those jobs are protected. We're talking about
05:022,000 jobs, direct and indirect, in an area that has been neglected for so long. So I think it's
05:08important that the government get in there, that the EU get in there to support those jobs,
05:12to assure that the markets are diversified. Because aluminium is such a product that's in
05:20such demand across the EU. It shouldn't be going to Russia.
05:24So the plant will stay open for now?
05:26Absolutely. Let's be quite clear. Illumina isn't a sanctioned project. And all through
05:30the 21 EU sanctions package against Russia, Ireland has backed every single package. We've never looked
05:36for an exemption. We've never argued against it. And indeed, David O'Sullivan, former Commissioner
05:40and Secretary General, has repeatedly said that Ireland is one of the best member states in terms
05:44of actually applying the sanctions. So we work with commission partners. We have a very detailed
05:49investigation. Very serious charges were made against where the products are going. There is
05:54a lot of confusion about that. And this Limerick refinery is front page of all the European papers?
05:59Ununderstandably so. And throughout Russia's horrible war in Ukraine, we've been quite clear that we can
06:04have nothing that is helping Russia in that effort. That's why we've been to the fore in terms of
06:09coming down against the Russian shadow fleet, why we've pushed so hard in relation to energy capping,
06:13and why we have worked consistently within the Council, as well as across the European Parliament,
06:18to make sure that we back sanctions, that we back supports, and we challenge the likes of the
06:22former Hungarian regime under Viktor Orban.
06:25Well, of course, it's a different EU now since Peter Meyer has come into power. But of course,
06:29you mentioned the war in Ukraine. What about defence? There was a new report out this week
06:33by the European Defence Agency saying that Ireland is spending the least in the whole
06:37of the European Union on defence, just 0.2 of its GDP. Is that okay, do you think?
06:43Well, defence spending has been increased in Ireland, and I welcome that because there have been years,
06:48if not decades, of neglect in the whole area of defence. I'm glad to see that being addressed now.
06:53But it's up to 5% is what the EU want. But I think we need to be very careful.
07:00We are not going down the
07:01path of a new European army or of the militarisation. Defence is a member state obligation, and it's a
07:09member state competency.
07:11Should Ireland join NATO, do you think?
07:12No, I don't. No, I think our defence is sovereign. And I think we are a military neutral country. And
07:19I
07:19think we need to be assured in everything that we do that we remain military neutral. That is the wish
07:24of the Irish people.
07:25But will it not get awkward now during the presidency? Because of course, the big conversation today in
07:29Brussels is rearming Europe, getting ready by 2030, pumping billions into defence. And whereas Ireland,
07:36it's the lowest spender in the bloc.
07:37And that's why it's important we talk about facts domestically, as well as on a European level.
07:40The EU doesn't want member states to get to 5% defence spending. That's NATO, Rose.
07:44Secondly, there's no plan for an EU army. That's a concept that is regularly put out by your political
07:48party. That's an on the bloc. What the Irish government has said consistently, we are commissioned
07:52on defence. We are going to double our defence spending. It'll be up to 3 billion euro a year
07:57in the next year or two.
07:58In the next two years, we've installed new drone defence technology, new radar technologies. We know
08:04that the situation in Europe at the moment, where there is literally a war on our borders,
08:08and there's levels of hybrid terrorism that couldn't have been counted 10 years ago.
08:13This is the question, who would protect the Irish if there was an invasion? And I'm talking as well,
08:16a cyber attack, sabotage?
08:18Well, some progress has been made there. But obviously, there will be cooperation with other
08:22member states as well, and indeed, with our nearest neighbour. But that must be done,
08:26but not our military neutrality.
08:28Do you trust in the UK to save Ireland now when they have so much on their hands?
08:31Well, it's not a case of trust in the UK to save Ireland. I mean, we are increasing,
08:34as you said, our own spending in that area, in sonar and radar and things that need to be done.
08:39But obviously, as a small nation, we will never be in a situation where we can be completely
08:44stand alone in terms of our defence. So I think it's important for member states to work together.
08:50But it's very important. Sovereignty is very important too. And making our own decisions is very
08:55important.
08:56And is there any pressure now on Ireland to join NATO?
08:58There's absolutely no pressure for us to join NATO. And I think, to be quite frank,
09:02it's never a discussion that's actually brought up around defence ministers' tables. It's more of
09:05an obsession here. We should be able to talk about security and neutrality without drifting into the
09:10space of NATO. What is really, really clear is that Europe wants to increase levels of cooperation
09:15on security and defence and increase the levels of spending. Ireland wants to be part of that,
09:19because the day of invasions isn't what we're worried about. We had a cyber attack in this
09:22jurisdiction only a couple of years ago, took our health system offline. That came from Russia. We
09:27need that investment in cooperation.
09:28And what the people want is Irish neutrality to be enshrined in the constitution. And I think that
09:33is something very important and something that needs to be done to reassure Ireland,
09:37Irish people. There is a lack of trust. There is a lack of trust in government, but there's in this
09:42area, but there's also a lack of trust in the EU project as a whole.
09:47Rose, that's a complete false matter.
09:48You can't just say, no, no, you've just presented something that's a faction incorrect.
09:51Please let me finish my sentence.
09:52Okay, but I have to correct a faction incorrect.
09:55There is a creeping militarisation. If you look at the EU spending and the EU funding that we have,
10:00people do not want funding spent on militarisation when so many people are suffering with the cost
10:08of living and going without, and there's been so much neglect in areas as well.
10:12Do you agree with that people actually are struggling back home and they don't want to spend on defence?
10:15Well, people realise that you do need to invest at home. Even when your grocery bills are tough,
10:20you still need to spend on locks on your doors and you still need to have a house alarm. Rose
10:23is there
10:24taking the decision to speak on behalf of the Irish people and said that there's a lack of trust against
10:28the EU, whereas every Eurobarometer and European movement support shows that the vast...
10:32In the area of militarisation.
10:32I'm sorry, this is really important. No, because in the vast majority of Irish people,
10:35not only do they trust in the EU, but actually it's an even split between Irish people who want
10:39us to increase the level of defence and security and also those who don't agree with the policy
10:44of military neutrality. But this is a true thing. Neutrality isn't on the agenda. We don't need it
10:48inserted in the constitution. It's not a constitutional matter. Because there is...
10:51What are you saying?
10:51Because, repeat, you've just said the Irish people want us to do that.
10:55We have a very consistent policy that's not under any threat, bar the opinions of the opposition
10:59politicians. Whereas, on a European scale, we're trying to prove to European partners that we're
11:03serious about defense and security.
11:03Well, then go to the people and ask them. Ask them in a referendum.
11:06OK, right. The last bill presented before the Dáil, would you be able to say that you back the people
11:12of Palestine over Israel under that? No, because we have to be neutral. Your version of neutrality and
11:17the one that you talk about without going into depth completely removes the ability to work with
11:21partners. We're not neutral. We're in the European Union. We are militarily neutral.
11:25We're military neutral, yes.
11:26Well, as you can see, we're just getting warmed up here on The Ring. Stay with us,
11:29because we're ready for the next round here on The Ring.
11:35Well, as you can see, we're getting a bit of a flavour of the debates that go on inside the
11:39Dáil,
11:40the national parliaments, and as well, of course, over in Brussels and Strasbourg,
11:43in the European parliaments. And now it's time to give our viewers a real glimpse of how you actually
11:47put questions to each other. Rose Conway-Walsh, you can address your first question. Tina, over to me.
11:51OK, well, my first question is around simplification, and some of the concerns I have around that.
11:56What outcomes would you expect to have from the simplification agenda? And would you be concerned
12:02about workers' rights, about environmental rights, and human rights, indeed, with the simplification
12:08agenda that's been pushed at EU level? The simplification agenda is vital. It's vital to ensure
12:14the European Union actually keeps pace with the United States and China in terms of creating a
12:18more competitive Europe, but also making sure that we have the future jobs and technology that
12:23workers will actually be able to have. What we have is 10 omnidust packages, three of which have gone
12:28through the stage. Another seven, at least three of those, will be pushed ahead by the Irish presidency
12:33that are vital. I have zero concerns. I was on the EBSCO Council as an Enterprise Minister when we worked
12:39with both Leta and Draghi to make sure that this agenda is one that does recognise the need to make
12:44sure that it is human-led, that workers' rights are protected, that our environmental responsibilities
12:48are, but also to make sure that SMEs can actually continue. Because repeatedly, and understanding
12:55me, and I fully agree with Rose, even though we come from different sides of the political spectrum,
12:58repeatedly you raise the pressures of bureaucracy on small Irish indigenous businesses. Well, that's why we
13:03need to address that at a European level with a simplification package that allows businesses to be liberated.
13:07That's the administration burden being removed and the red tape being removed. And absolutely,
13:12I agree with that. But I am very concerned about the deregulation and the push to deregulate. We
13:17see in this country alone in the defective concrete blocks, we're going to end up paying over $9 billion
13:23for light regulation in this country. And I don't want to see, we need to see proper regulation. We need
13:31to
13:31protect our populations from their drive towards green. Do you fear it could turn into over-deregulation?
13:36Not at all. I fully agree with Rose. There is no deregulation agenda there,
13:40and we need to knit this in the bud. This is about a simplification to make sure that when
13:43we're talking about environmental reporting, that a small business in Galway or Mayo or wherever it
13:47may be is not filling in the same form five times because it has to do at a European level,
13:52domestic level, and then at a regional level. It's about a simplification agenda to make sure that
13:56we can get finance deployed quicker, to invest in businesses, invest in workers, invest in education.
14:01This agenda is crucial, and if Europe doesn't pursue these omnidust packages,
14:05Europe will fall away and simply be a supply chain into China and America.
14:09That's, of course, the view as well of Mario Draghi, if anyone has read his
14:12very lengthy report about how we could die, quote, a slow agony. Neil Richmond,
14:16your chance now to address your question to Rose. Can we watch?
14:20Rose and I repeatedly say that we stand with Ukraine, but I've struggled to, how do we say that we
14:25stand
14:25with Ukraine when Sinn Fein voted against, in the European Parliament and in the Dáil,
14:30the 90 billion euro loan package that the EU worked so hard, managed to get through when
14:34the Hungarian regime changed. Is that standing with Ukraine? Do you really stand with Ukraine?
14:38We absolutely stand very firmly with Ukraine and against the war of aggression from Russia.
14:44The reason why we voted in the way that we did against that was because, again, it was impacting
14:50our military neutrality. The 20 billion of that that was going towards militarization, we didn't feel
14:56that we could support that. We 100 percent would support any humanitarian effort for Ukraine.
15:05But there's a difference there, and I would ask at EU level that these be separated so that we would
15:10be enabled to vote for the humanitarian effort without the militarization. I don't want us to be paying for
15:20weapons to be sent to any country. No, but they are separated. This is the same with the European
15:24Peace Facility. It's the same with this 90 billion euro loan. It's the same with all the funding that
15:29Ireland has prepared, the over 250 million directly and over 250 collectively that goes to support the
15:34Ukrainian effort. It is for non-lethal supports. Radar technology surely is okay. Surely mine clearing
15:40technology is okay, as well as an underground school in the Donetsk, as well as providing ambulances and
15:45humanitarian equipment. The thing is, they are separated against. But when you put that decision to vote
15:49against the 90 million euro package, vociferously by your finance spokesman, and then we see Sinn Féin
15:54MEPs in the European Parliament either abstaining or voting against sanctions package, it's hard to
15:58believe that you stand with Ukraine. Do you think there's an understanding of what they were
16:00signing against? Oh, I certainly do, yes. Our MEPs, Lynn Boylan and Kathleen Funcion knew exactly what
16:06they were doing, and we worked together with them from here. But we will not. We will vote.
16:12So why do they vote against sanctions packages? Because we will vote for humanitarian support.
16:15No, no, but I'm talking about sanctions packages now. We will not.
16:18We will not. You tied together, you vote against the 90
16:20billion euro loan assistance, domestically and on a European level. At the same time,
16:24your MEPs, not just from the group of the left, from the Sinn Féin MEPs, have repeatedly voted
16:29against or abstained against the 21 sanctions packages. How on earth can they do that?
16:34Because sometimes when things are all bundled in together, and you have amendments, so the
16:39amendments weren't accepted, or the amendments weren't voted. But we're talking about Ukraine,
16:45and our stance in Ukraine, and Sinn Féin as a party stand absolutely firmly with Ukraine.
16:51Well, should Ukraine join the European Union?
16:54Absolutely, yes. And I think that's one of the things that the
16:57Irish presidency can do, Ukraine and Moldova, in terms of the expansion of the EU. And that needs
17:02to be quickened as quickly as is possible.
17:05Well, we've heard the views from our politicians here. Now it's time to bring in a new voice.
17:13I'd like to bring in the voice of Andy Burnham, the brand new Prime Minister of the United Kingdom,
17:18the fifth Prime Minister in just four years. Speaking earlier this week, he said,
17:23I have a plan. I have a style. It's my style. And that's my mission, as your new leader,
17:30to bring back hope. What's your view on the new Prime Minister of the United Kingdom,
17:35and what it will mean for Ireland-UK relations? Well, he's won in a long line of Prime Ministers
17:41in the last 10 years. I wish him well in the job that he's doing. I think Britain
17:45has very many challenges. He has lots of challenges to sort out. But for us as a nation, obviously,
17:51we want our Irish independence. We want to be in charge of our own affairs. We want to be good
17:55neighbours with those beside us. But we would hope that he will facilitate that, as was outlined
18:04in the Good Friday Agreement. And Neil Richmond, he's been sworn in on the very week that the EU and
18:09the UK were meant to host their summit, all about getting closer together. What will all this mean
18:13now, do you think, for Brussels-London relations and, of course, for Ireland?
18:17Well, I think directly in British-Irish relations, this is a good thing. Relations between the two
18:22countries and indeed relations between Britain and the European Union are so much better today than
18:25they were a number of years ago under the likes of Liz Truss or Barnes Johnson. And I give credit
18:29not only to Keir Starmer, but indeed Rishi Sunak for bringing that along. But from a European point of
18:34view, there is an opportunity to get ever closer with Britain. As much as they are facing very
18:38difficult times, they're still one of the world's largest economies. They are still a very important
18:42economic as well as political partner for all of us in Europe. So the closer the relations,
18:46the better. Andy Burnham is of Irish descent. His lineage comes from Louth. His constituencies
18:51in Manchester have a really strong Irish population. His replacement as mayor of Manchester,
18:56indeed, is from the north. So it's a really positive move. But we want to see that relationship
19:00grow ever, ever closer. And perhaps maybe one day we see a British rejoin.
19:03Would you agree with that? Well, I would like a separation from Britain,
19:07never mind us joining closer together. But there are things that we need to tackle together as two
19:11islands, like climate change. And is that separation feasible? Just back to that debate on United
19:14Ireland. Yes, absolutely it is. I mean, we've seen even in the last week, Neil's own government or
19:20party leader bring it on the whole business. I think it is, we believe that it's possible by 2030.
19:28We're coming up to the 28th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement. And I know there's an
19:32inter-parliamentary conference as well that we look at the peace agreement that we have here.
19:38I think the EU member states have a lot to learn from our peace agreement. It is the international
19:43legally binding agreement, one of the most enduring in the world. That's a view from Rose Conway-Walsh.
19:48But now it's time to take a very short break here on The Ring. Don't go anywhere.
20:01Welcome back to The Ring, Eurie News' weekly debate show this week, coming to you from Europe House
20:07in Dublin. I'm Maeve McMahon. And for this edition, I'm joined by Neil Richmond and Rose Conway-Walsh.
20:14And we're zooming in on the fact that Ireland is currently holding the rotating presidency of the
20:19Council of the European Union. Now we've already heard some views from our politicians. Now it's
20:23time to hear from you. We took to the streets of the Irish capital to ask people what issues
20:29they wanted Ireland to focus on over the next six months. And first, if they even knew the presidency
20:35was taking place. No. I'm aware until the end of the year, yeah. No, I didn't know. No, I don't
20:42know
20:42anything about politics, I'll be honest. Yes, I did. I don't think there's issues that can push,
20:47but I think it should shine a spotlight onto the issues we have here in Ireland. So like the
20:50homelessness crisis, for example, I think that should cause a little bit more pressure on politicians
20:53to get it done. The one thing that is anxiety-inducing for me would be the fact that everyone is
20:58investing more in militarization. So disarmament would be key. Divesting from that and maybe
21:06investing more in education. More support for Palestine, less Israeli products on shelves.
21:12Housing. Probably housing, 100%. Rising cost of living and a lot of people are even food insecure,
21:20people don't realize that. Food insecurity has gone way up. And just support for like local
21:25businesses and stuff. A lot of people are closing down. While we're not in NATO, we kind of avoid and
21:30stay out of the firing line for at least the media. We've always been a neutral country and we should
21:36stay that way. No, no. I think keep our neutrality for sure. Yeah, yeah. So there you go. A lot
21:41of
21:41interesting views. Many not even knowing the presidency is taking place. Does that surprise you?
21:45Well, if you're living in Dublin, you can't avoid it because of the traffic. But it doesn't surprise me,
21:49no. And I think that's one of the challenges of the presidency is that, you know, that democratic
21:54deficit that's there in terms of education for people are making it relevant, making the whole
22:00EU project relevant in people's everyday lives. And they outline some of them there like the homelessness,
22:06housing, cost of living, all of those things that are impacting people. And obviously,
22:11Palestine is hugely important here in Ireland as well and support for Palestine. Your view there?
22:17I think it is a challenge, but it's also a great opportunity. In 2013, when we lasted the presidency,
22:21we launched the Blue Star Programme in partnership with the European Commission and Parliament.
22:25And it's on all of us, not just those in the government, to work with the European member
22:28states that have been twinned with our counties. Dublin's twinned with Greece, so I, the Greek
22:31ambassador out of the school, to talk about, well, how this really matters. And look, I've been working
22:35in European politics for over 20 years. The biggest issue for every EU politician, whatever the member
22:40state or where they're based or what level they're serving at, is showing the population at large how
22:44Europe works for them and how they can influence it. But as you can see,
22:47the disconnect, I mean, is huge between the capital city here and Brussels and what exactly is going on.
22:53We heard housing mentioned a lot there in that fox pop. What can be done here? And do you think
22:58Brussels can play a role? Because they're trying to start to play a role here.
23:00I certainly think they can. And I was glad to see at the beginning, at the launch of the presidency,
23:05that there was going to be a housing summit here. I think it's something that certainly impacts us
23:09here. So many people cannot afford a home now, so it's affordability. But I see there's
23:14commonalities across some of the other EU member states as well. So I think collectively,
23:19it has to be looked at. If people cannot afford a home, so many children growing up, homelessness,
23:25what price are we going to pay for that in the future? What price are these children paying?
23:29That's the thing. We understand the problem.
23:31To enable more funding, obviously more funding for housing.
23:34But now with the big focus on the fence is going to be in the long-term budgets,
23:39whereas housing, I mean, won't even get a look in.
23:42Well, actually, this is the first time that we have a housing commissioner. This is the first time
23:45that we have the president of the European Council talking about housing as a European issue. It had
23:49always been seen as a member state issue. And Rose is right. There isn't an EU member state that isn't
23:53having an issue with housing, just like Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom. We're coming out of the
23:58financial crash, followed by COVID, followed by Russia's war in Ukraine that absolutely repressed
24:04the ability to build homes. We just don't have enough homes in this country. So that's how we
24:08have to work with European partners to get the finance in place and to make sure that we have
24:11regulation to allow the government. We built 25% more homes this year than last year. We want to do
24:16more of that again and find every which way to build more homes. And of course, the main goals of
24:22the presidency are working on competitiveness and values. It does not mean anything, though,
24:27to regular people in the streets of Dublin. No, one of the values has to be that everybody has a
24:32home
24:32to live in, has somewhere to live in. So I don't think so. But values in terms of the Irish
24:37nation,
24:37as I said, support for Palestine, the value of international law, the value of people standing
24:43up for people, the value of people not ignoring a genocide that's happening, that's being played out
24:48every day on people's televisions and all of that. And yet we are so many months now after what was
24:54supposed to be a cessation of violence in Palestine, and people see that that's not happening.
24:58So there's protests in all of the EU events as well taking place.
25:02Is Ireland still censoring slightly on that topic?
25:04Not at all. I think anyone in an EU member state capital, and I've sat around foreign affairs
25:08council meetings where they've asked why is Ireland so focused on the plight of the people of Gaza,
25:13the West Bank, and indeed into Lebanon. We were the first member state with Spain who not only
25:18recognized Palestine, but consistently have brought the motion to European council meeting to spend the EU,
25:23Israel, trade association agreement. And Rose rightly talks about values when we hear about
25:28the vox pop. This matters to the Irish people. It matters to the Spanish people. I'd imagine it
25:32matters to every human. But you ask what do values mean to people? What does competitiveness mean?
25:36Competitiveness matters to every single citizen, whether they're buying a cup of coffee,
25:40trying to buy a home, or hold down a job. That's why it has to be one of the three
25:44pillars of our presidency.
25:45Okay, Neil Richmond and Rose Conway will stay with us as it's now time for our fifth and final round.
25:55So now it's time to do something a little bit different. I'm going to ask you a question,
25:59and you can answer with yes or no. Is that doable? We'll try. We'll try. Come on.
26:05Is the European Union a force of good, Neil Richmond? Yes or no?
26:08Oh, 100% yes. Yes.
26:11Is Ursula von der Leyen a good president of the European Commission? Yes or no?
26:15Yes. Should Ireland join the Schengen area? Yes or no? No, because of our relationship with the UK.
26:22No. Should Ireland join NATO? No. Ever? No. No.
26:29Is the future of the European Union bright? Yes or no? Yes, if it's done properly. Yes, very bright.
26:35And should Ireland defend its low corporate tax model? Yes or no? Yes. Tax sovereignty is very
26:43important, but obviously we have the OECD agreement now at the minimum rate of 15%. So it's more than one
26:49word, but I think that has been settled. Yes. Will you be there? Yes, as will the nine other EU
26:56member
26:57states whose corporate tax rates actually is lower than ours. As you can see, tricky to fit into a yes
27:00or no there.
27:01Is Ireland though too dependent on big tech companies? No. Yes, I think we need to invest
27:07more in our indigenous companies. What about the climate? Is Ireland doing enough to reach its
27:11climate targets? Yes or no? No, to be honest. No. You both agree on that? You agreed on a couple
27:18of
27:18things, right? Don't tell anyone. Neil Richmond and Rose Conway Walsh, that brings this edition of The Ring,
27:24coming to you from the Europe House here in Dublin to a close. Thank you so much for joining us
27:29and thank you
27:30for tuning in. Any comments or any issues that you'd like to address, you can always reach out to us
27:35here on The Ring at Euronews.com. Thank you so much for tuning in. Take care and stay with us
27:40on Euronews.
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