FORMER EU Commissioner Mairead McGuinness has been nominated for the role of vice president of the European People’s Party (EPP).
Ms McGuinness, who served as an MEP from 2004 to 2020, will be the Fine Gael nominee for the role, Tánaiste and Fine Gael leader Simon Harris has confirmed.
“Fine Gael is the party of Europe in Ireland,” he said.
“We are a proud member of the EPP, the most influential political block in EU decision-making.
Former EU Commissioner Mairead McGuinness has been nominated to be vice president of the EPP“Fine Gael has a proud history of putting forward our best and most capable politicians for positions in Europe and there is no one more qualified for this influential role than Mairead McGuinness.”
He added: “Mairead has over two decades of experience and a proven track record of serving at the highest levels in the EU institutions.
“She most recently served with distinction as Ireland’s European Commissioner with responsibility for Financial Services, Financial Stability and Capital Markets Union.
“She served as an MEP from 2004 and rose to the position of First Vice-President of the European Parliament and was highly regarded as an effective MEP.
“Given current geopolitical instability, it is essential that we have a strong Irish voice at the highest levels of EU decision making.”
Ms McGuinness said she was “honoured” to receive her party’s nomination.
“The EU faces significant uncertainty in an unstable world and our engagement with the EPP political family is never as important as it is today,” she said.
“Ireland’s voice at every level of the EU political infrastructure matters and I hope to bring a solid voice to the EPP Party based on my 20 years of work at EU level.”
Voting for the new EPP presidency will take place at the EPP Congress in Valencia, Spain in April.
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