Joe O'Reilly: Hold the Line on CAP, Build Jobs in AI & Green
Joe O'Reilly addresses the Seanad as he welcomes MEPs to the chamber and presses for concrete EU action on the Common Agricultural Policy, farm retirement, peace process funding, and the jobs impacts of AI and green energy. He calls for European leadership to protect farmers, support succession, and create postgraduate routes and jobs in artificial intelligence and renewable energy.
Joe O'Reilly opens by noting that around 70% of decisions affecting daily life in Ireland originate in Europe, underscoring the importance of capable MEP representation. He praises the five MEPs present and frames today’s meeting as the continuation of a process he began as Cathaoirleach of the Seanad.
O'Reilly focuses on the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), warning that any threat to CAP endangers 80,000 livestock and beef sheep farmers on low incomes. He asks how realistic it is to hold the line on CAP and requests specifics on a farm retirement scheme and the security of peace process funding.
Turning to employment, O'Reilly raises recent job losses and the disruptive potential of AI. He asks the MEPs how Europe can support postgraduate AI education, develop master's programmes, and lead the creation of jobs in AI and green energy so society can adapt and replace roles that technology may displace.
He reflects on Ireland pre- and post-EU, credits the EU with positive social and economic changes, and urges a visible European lead in job creation. He closes by expressing pride in the Senate-MEP interaction and a wish for regular meetings over the coming years.
EU influence on everyday life
Joe O'Reilly opens by noting that around 70% of decisions affecting daily life in Ireland originate in Europe, underscoring the importance of capable MEP representation. He praises the five MEPs present and frames today’s meeting as the continuation of a process he began as Cathaoirleach of the Seanad.
Farm policy and peace funding concerns
O'Reilly focuses on the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), warning that any threat to CAP endangers 80,000 livestock and beef sheep farmers on low incomes. He asks how realistic it is to hold the line on CAP and requests specifics on a farm retirement scheme and the security of peace process funding.
AI, green jobs and succession
Turning to employment, O'Reilly raises recent job losses and the disruptive potential of AI. He asks the MEPs how Europe can support postgraduate AI education, develop master's programmes, and lead the creation of jobs in AI and green energy so society can adapt and replace roles that technology may displace.
Institutional ties and future meetings
He reflects on Ireland pre- and post-EU, credits the EU with positive social and economic changes, and urges a visible European lead in job creation. He closes by expressing pride in the Senate-MEP interaction and a wish for regular meetings over the coming years.
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Transcript
Go raibh maith agat Cathaoirleach. Could I join with Senator Loughlin in welcoming you, our MEPs, to the chamber. I'm particularly personally proud that when I was last Cathaoirleach of the Seanad, I initiated this process and chaired initial meetings with you here, working alongside our Cathaoirleach at that time. And I think it was a great initiative and it's clearly bearing fruit and today is another example of it. I want to say very unpatronisingly and very genuinely that we are extremely well served in all five of you representing our region. You are doing that with a high level of competence and commitment and we can be very proud of that and that's so important to us. It is the case, I don't know how they measure these things, but according to all stated metrics, that about 70% of the decisions that impact on our lives on a daily basis here in Ireland have their genesis or their origin in Europe. And that makes the quality of people and the commitment of the people we have in the European Parliament paramount. And that's why your performances today are reassuring. I suppose, like Fiona, I start with the Common Agricultural Policy. We have 80,000 livestock and beef sheep farmers in this country on low incomes and any threat to camp is a threat to their actual existence and their family's existence. And I also take the point well made by a number of you about succession, about the need for retention and for succession opportunity. And I suppose my first question here would be how realistic is it that you can hold the line on cap? It's good that we have two lead negotiators here, but how realistic is that? And secondly, could you be specific about a farm retirement scheme? I've always been a great advocate of that, and I've noticed when the pension did exist some years ago in Ireland, it was an enormous success. And I would be grateful if you would elaborate on the potential for that. How would that specifically come about? How could Europe be a focus there? And Nina referenced and others the peace process funding. That's important. I'd just like specifics on that. Do you think it's threatened? If it's threatened, what can be done to stop it? We recently had a new phenomenon in recent times in Ireland, and that's job losses. And we hadn't had that for a number of years. And that's within meta, obviously. And obviously, AI is a threat. So I would like you to comment on your responses on how we can get postgraduate education in artificial intelligence, master's degrees going in artificial intelligence, how we can maximise the opportunity of artificial intelligence, how we can create the jobs from it that to replace the jobs it will undo. And I think that would be of extraordinary interest to all of us to hear about. Kieran earlier was autobiographical, and I'll be autobiographical too, in saying that I am not embarrassed to say that I lived in Ireland before the EU, and I lived longer, I hasten to add, in the Ireland post-EU, lest there be any ambiguity. But no, I did live a long time, but I did live a lot of my early teenage years before the EU. And I know that the EU has been transformative for women, has been transformative for livelihood, and that the single market has had an enormous impact on jobs. And for that reason, jobs in AI are critical, but jobs in alternative energy, jobs in green energy, are critical too. And I suppose my question to you here, or my challenge to you, or my comment here is, we need a lead from Europe, a greater visible lead for Europe, in the creation of jobs in the green energy sector, and in the creation of jobs in the AI sector. In other words, we need a society changes to change and roll with that. So, I notice that the time is going, but I will just say that I think today is a great day's work. I'm very proud of how all this has evolved, this interaction between our MEPs and the Senate. I think it's an important interaction, and I hope it will continue. I look forward to your responses, and I look forward to us meeting on a very regular basis over the coming few years, three years, we hope. Thank you.