YEPP held last weekend a Council Meeting in Dublin, hosted by Young Fine Gael. This event has been the largest gathering of Europe’s centre-right in Ireland in over a decade, with delegates from 31 countries attending.
Between the 24th and 26th of April, over 80 delegates from across Europe gathered for three days of policy discussions, debates, and networking around the theme of “Getting Growth Going: Driving a European Economic Revival.”
Delegates had the chance to learn more about Irish politics and the democratic system courtesy of Neale Richmond TD, Minister of State for International Development and Diaspora, Barry Ward TD, Chair of the Oireachtas Committee on European Affairs, Cllr Bridin Murphy, Member of the Irish Delegation to the European Committee of the Regions, and John Carroll, Secretary General of Fine Gael, and had the honour of deepening their understanding of Irish foreign affairs and defence with Minister for Foreign Affairs, Minister for Defence, and Deputy Leader of Fine Gael, Helen McEntee TD.
The conference also brought some seriously impressive voices to the floor. Mairead McGuinness, EPP Vice-President and former European Commissioner for Financial Services, Financial Stability and Capital Markets Union, Leo Varadkar, Taoiseach (Prime Minister) of Ireland from 2017 to 2024, and Lucinda Creighton, CEO of Vulcan Consulting, former Minister for European Affairs, former EPP Vice-President and former YEPP Deputy Secretary General, all took the stage to share their political perspectives on how to grow the European economy.
A very special highlight was the Keynote address given by the Tánaiste (Deputy Prime Minister) and Leader of Fine Gael, Simon Harris. Mr. Harris’s intervention couldn’t have been more relevant to the topic.
This conference was a fantastic opportunity for us to exchange ideas, debate resolutions, discuss policy, and hear Ireland’s perspective on Europe’s political direction.
A special thanks to YFG for hosting this event, especially to Eoin Scarlett, YEPP Deputy Secretary General, Jamie Malone, President of YFG, and Shane Price, International Secretary of YFG, as well as the whole team involved in the organisation of this wonderful event.
