Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs Ordinary meeting
15 July 2026
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ECON European Parliament
Follow its sittings06:58 - 08:36
Speaker 1
Okay, dear colleagues. I am pleased to welcome Mr. Simon Harris, Ecofin President and Minister of Finance of Ireland, who is joining us today for an exchange of views on the priorities of the Irish presidency in the Ecofin. Ireland took over the rotating presidency of the Council of the EU on July 2026 the first. Competitiveness, resilience, and fiscal sustainability, as well as agility in responding to international economic development, which is really needed, have been highlighted as your guiding principle in steering Ecofin agenda. In the financial sector, the savings and investment union lies at the heart of our common priorities, since it is about creating a true single market for capital and financial services.
We understand that priority will be given to achieving the targets on the SIU and the digital euro, helping to mobilize resources for long-term economic growth and competitiveness.
So we look forward to this exchange of view. I will give you the floor for 10 minutes or less, you mean, can be seven. And then there will be a Q&A session with the members of the ECON committee, one minute and a half for the question, three minutes for the answer, but I think we have the time, we have one hour. So welcome, dear Simon, the floor is yours.
08:36 - 12:11
Speaker 2
Merci, thank you so much. Thank you, Madam Chair, honorable members of the committee, ladies and gentlemen. It's a great honor to be here with you in the European Parliament today, and I'm delighted to have this opportunity to share with you the economic and financial priorities of the Irish presidency for the next six months. This is our country's eighth presidency, but indeed it's the first since Irish became a fully operational working language of the European Union in January 2022. And I make that point because our work will be guided by a motto, Ní neart go cur le chéile, which in English means strength with unity.
And I think that's such an important motto at this moment in time, because we are always stronger when we work together, when we try to find common purpose and common solutions and ways forwards on important issues for our citizens. I'm particularly conscious that Ireland takes over the presidency at a time when the geopolitical environment is volatile and it's deeply challenging.
Nevertheless, we believe and we must believe, we must passionately believe that Europe has the means to take determined action in several vital areas that would allow us to strengthen our economic foundations. And our presidency program is structured around three thematic pillars: competitiveness, values, and security. Specifically in my role as president of the ECOFIN Council, this translates into priorities focused on delivering outcomes that will ensure the European Union's economy, strengthen its resilience, and will ensure that our shared values are reflected in our action both domestically across our Union and internationally. At the very outset, I want to be really clear in reiterating the presidency's firm commitment to providing continued economic and financial support to Ukraine. This is one of our top priorities, including Ukraine's longer-term reconstruction following the brutal illegal Russian invasion.
We will continue to keep Ukraine as a standing item on all our ECOFIN agendas, which will provide both ministers and our institutions with the opportunity to take stock of loan disbursements, the economic impact of related sanctions, and the overall financial and economic impact of Russia's illegal and unjustified war. When it comes to competitiveness, we have a mandate from the European Council to make quick progress.
Indeed, our institutions, this Parliament, the Council, and the Commission, all committed to specific deadlines for priority files in the One Europe, One Market roadmap. When it comes to competitiveness, I'm conscious it's often a word that is used. What does it mean to our citizens? What does it mean to our businesses? What does it mean to our Union?
Well, this is priority number one for my work during the presidency. And really, I'd make three points. When we talk about Savings and Investment Union, it's about financing our economy. When we talk about simplification, it's about helping to speed up delivery. And when we talk about resilience, it's about identifying strategic projects that can boost Europe, like the digital euro, which we're working on.
So, SIU, simplification, resilience, that is at the beating heart of the competitiveness pillar of our presidency. In the Ecofin Council, the absolute key priority for the presidency will be advancing work on the Savings and Investment Union. This very much includes the market integration and supervision package as our main legislative file. Can I say to you, dear colleagues, it is of utmost importance that we reach political agreement on this file. At the Ecofin meeting last week, the first I had the privilege of chairing, I asked ministers to commit to two things.
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