IIEA Talks

In this event, Matthew O’Toole MLA presents the SDLP’s vision for the implementation of the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland. He discusses his party’s views on the most recent solutions presented both by the UK Government and the European Commission. He also addresses the challenges and opportunities which lie ahead for Northern Ireland, relations on this island and beyond, following the UK’s exit from the EU. About the Speakers: Matthew O’Toole MLA is a Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) politician who has served as a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) for the Belfast South constituency in the Northern Ireland Assembly since January 2020. He was previously Chief Press Officer for Europe at Number 10 Downing Street between 2015 and 2017. As a civil servant, Mr O’Toole helped coordinate UK Government communications efforts during the EU referendum campaign through to the beginning of the formal Brexit negotiations. After leaving Whitehall, he wrote widely on the consequences of Brexit for the island of Ireland, including for the Irish Times, Financial Times, Politico, Guardian and New Statesman.

A webinar session, The Future of the Global Economy: US and Irish Perspectives, featuring major keynote addresses by: Janet Yellen, U.S Secretary of the Treasury; and Paschal Donohoe T.D., Minister for Finance of Ireland & President of the Eurogroup. Following their addresses, both Secretary Yellen and Minister Donohoe will then participate in a moderated conversation with Dan O’Brien, Chief Economist of IIEA. About the Speakers: Janet Yellen was sworn in as the 78th Secretary of the Treasury of the United States in January 2021. An economist by training, she took office after almost fifty years in academia and public service. She is the first person in American history to have led the White House Council of Economic Advisors, the Federal Reserve, and the Treasury Department. Paschal Donohoe TD is Minister for Finance of Ireland, a position he has held since June 2020 having previously served as Minister for Finance & Public Expenditure and Reform from 2016 to 2020. Minister Donohoe has also served as President of the Eurogroup since July 2020. He represents the Dublin Central Constituency and previously served as Minister for Transport, Tourism & Sport and Minister of State for European Affairs.

In June 2021, the EU reached agreement on reforms for the new common agricultural policy (CAP) to be implemented in 2023 which aim to make the CAP fairer, greener, and more sustainable in the context of the EU’s Green Deal goals and Farm-to-Fork strategy. How exactly EU Member States will achieve these goals will be determined by national strategic plans, based on the EU’s objectives of socially, environmentally and economically sustainable agriculture. This address from Commissioner Wojciechowski outlines what the future of the CAP will look like, what it will mean for European farmers, and what a socially, environmentally, and economically sustainable CAP entails. About the Speaker: Mr. Wojciechowski became European Commissioner for Agriculture in 2019 as part of President von der Leyen’s cabinet. He has previously served as a member of the European Court of Auditors, as an MEP in the European Parliament, Deputy Speaker of the Sejm (Polish Parliament) and as President of the Polish Supreme Audit Office. Prior to entering politics, Mr. Wojciechowski was a member of the National Council of the Judicary of Poland, and a judge at the High of Court of Justice. He holds a Masters of Law from the University of Łódź in Poland.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the EU proposal for a European Health Union has become a high priority, while the area of healthcare remains the sole domain of national governments. 'Europe's Beating Cancer Plan' is the EU's latest effort to mobilise the collective power of its Member States in new areas of healthcare policy.   The plan contains concrete, ambitious actions that will support, coordinate, and complement Member States’ national policies in the area of cancer prevention, treatment and care. It also recognises the scope of the challenge and addresses research and innovation.    This expert panel provides policy, clinical, patient and industry perspectives on the Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan and discusses how it could shape the future of national cancer care and policy in Ireland. The panel also compares Ireland’s performance to that of its European counterparts in terms of cancer care outcomes and the lessons to be learned to improve care for patients in Ireland.  Speakers include:   Matthias Schuppe, Project Leader for the Cancer Task Force, DG SANTE, European Commission  Anouk de Vroey, Senior Director of Government Affairs & Policy, Johnson & Johnson  Professor John Crown, Professor and Consultant Medical Oncologist, St Vincent’s Private Hospital  Rachel Morrogh, Executive Director of Advocacy and External Relations, Irish Cancer Society   The event will be moderated by Terence O’Rourke, IIEA Board Member and Chairman of Enterprise Ireland and of ESB.  About the Speakers:  Matthias Schuppe is the Project Leader of the Cancer Task Force in DG SANTE at the European Commission. Mr Schuppe has over 8 years experience in policy and project management at the Commission. Previously, he worked for the European Public Health Alliance and the European Health Forum Gastein. He holds an MSc in Health Services and Systems Research from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine at the University of London.  Anouk de Vroey currently leads the EMEA Government Affairs & Policy team for the pharmaceutical division of Johnson & Johnson – Janssen pharmaceuticals. Ms de Vroey is responsible for managing the implementation of advanced purchase agreements in EMEA of Janssen’s COVID19 vaccine. She is involved in several industry platforms to support a strong climate of biopharmaceutical innovation. Throughout her 22 year-career in the pharmaceutical industry, Ms de Vroey has been involved in initiatives to accelerate the European Market Authorization procedures both at the EU Commission and the European Federation of the Pharmaceutical Industry.  John Crown is a Professor and consultant medical oncologist at St. Vincent’s Private Hosptial. He received his medical training at University College Dublin and the State University of New York. He completed his fellowship training in oncology at Mount Sinai Medical Centre and in haematology/oncology at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Centre before joining St. Vincent’s University Hospital in 1993.  Rachel Morrogh is the Director of Advocacy and External Relations at the Irish Cancer Society since April 2020 and previously served as the Head of the Advocacy Department from 2018 to 2020. She is an experienced campaigner with extensive advocacy and policy experience having worked in the Oireachtas, large multinationals, public affairs consultancy and the non-profit sector for more than 15 years.

As the world’s geopolitical and economic balance shifts eastwards, the Indo-Pacific region is emerging as an area of vital strategic importance. However, it is also a region of rising tensions and increasing geopolitical competition. The EU’s Indo-Pacific strategy, presented in September 2021, is a significant moment for the development of EU policy in this region. This event explores Europe’s deepening engagement in the Indo-Pacific region, and encompasses the perspectives of the EU, Member States and regional actors. About the Speakers: George Cunningham, is a Strategic Adviser on Asia-Pacific Affairs in the European External Action Service. He was previously Deputy EU Ambassador to Afghanistan (2016-18). Before this he served as EEAS Deputy Head of Division for China, Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan and Mongolia (2012-16). Shada Islam  is an advisor and analyst on Europe’s relations with Asia and Africa. She is a member of the European Policy Centre’s Strategic Council and she is a Non-resident fellow at the Center for Global Development. In 2017, she was selected as one of the 20 most influential women in Brussels by the magazine Politico. Dr Frédéric Grare is a Senior Policy Fellow with the Asia Programme at the European Council on Foreign Relations. He previously worked in the  French Ministry for Europe and External Affairs where he focused on the Indo-Pacific. Prior to this he served as the South Asia programme director at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

In the sixth event of the IIEA’s Development Matters lecture series, which is supported by Irish Aid, Dr David Nabarro assesses the outcomes of the UN Food Systems Summit. He discusses the importance of food systems thinking and the food systems approach. He also explores how a country like Ireland can play a leading role in this respect. About the Speaker: Dr David Nabarro is the Senior Advisor for the UN Food Systems Summit (UNFSS) Dialogues. Over 1600 dialogues were held around the world in advance of the ground-breaking UNFSS which took place from Thursday, 23 September to Friday 24 September 2021. Dr Nabarro is also the Special Envoy of the WHO Director-General on COVID-19. He previously was the Special Advisor of the UN Secretary-General on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and Climate Change. Dr Nabarro is a physician who studied at Oxford and holds a Master’s degree in reproductive endocrinology and public health.

Following the military takeover on 1 February 2021, the already precarious situation in Myanmar, marked by numerous ethnic conflicts, has deteriorated significantly. The military junta has enacted a harsh crackdown on civil protests, leading to the deaths of hundreds of civilians and the arrests of thousands. Protesters have formed people’s defence forces in retaliation, and clashes with ethnic armed groups have flared up in various parts of the country. The political crisis in Myanmar is compounded by the spread of COVID-19 while mass displacement, food insecurity, and a breakdown of national institutions further increase the need for humanitarian assistance. In her address to the IIEA, the Special Envoy of the UN Secretary-General discusses her own efforts to revive dialogue and peace negotiations at an international and regional level, as well as the UN’s work to address the humanitarian situation in Myanmar. Dr Mary Murphy, Senior Lecturer in Politics at University College Cork, chairs this event and joins the Special Envoy in a brief discussion on the situation in Myanmar. As part of the IIEA's Global Europe Project, this webinar is supported by the Department of Foreign Affairs. About the Speaker: Ms Christine Schraner-Burgener was appointed Special Envoy of the UN Secretary-General on Myanmar in April 2018. Ms Burgener has over 25 years of experience in diplomacy, having served in various high-level government positions in the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs. Ms Burgener was the Ambassador of Switzerland to the Federal Republic of Germany from 2015 to 2018. From 2009 to 2015, she served as Ambassador to the Kingdom of Thailand and led efforts to mediate between the two sides in the violence that erupted in Thailand in 2010.

In this webinar discussion, UN expert Richard Gowan offers his assessment of Ireland’s Presidency of the UN Security Council, which took place during the month of September. More broadly, he shares his analysis on the UNSC’s agenda for the 2021-22 period, during which time Ireland serves as a non-permanent member. Finally, he examines the role of the UNSC in an increasingly under strain multilateral order. About the Speaker: In his role as UN Director, Richard Gowan oversees International Crisis Group’s (ICG) advocacy work at the United Nations, liaising with diplomats and UN officials in New York. He was previously a Consulting Analyst with ICG in 2016 and 2017. He has worked with the European Council on Foreign Relations, New York University Center on International Cooperation and the Foreign Policy Centre (London). He has taught at the School of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University and Stanford in New York.

On Friday, 16 July 2021, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen visited Ireland to announce the approval of almost €1 billion in funding to finance Ireland’s COVID-19 recovery. This funding is drawn from NextGenerationEU, the EU’s €800 billion recovery fund jointly negotiated by the Member States and the European Parliament as co-legislators, which aims to support a sustainable, equitable recovery across the EU as well as advance the green and digital transitions over the coming decades. This event is the first in a series co-organised with the European Parliament Liaison Office in Dublin ahead of the European Citizens’ Panel, which will be hosted by the IIEA in Dublin Castle on 3-5 December 2021, as part of the Conference on the Future of Europe. About the Speakers: Frances Fitzgerald is an MEP representing Dublin City & County for Fine Gael, and is a Vice-President of the European Peoples’ Party, and currently serves on the Economic and Monetary Affairs (ECON, Women’s’ Rights and Equality (FEMM) and Development (DEVE) Committees. Prior to joining the European Parliament, Ms. Fitzgerald was a Senator and T.D. in Dublin Mid-West (2007-2019) and Dublin South East (1992-2002), and she has served as Tánaiste (2016-2017), Minister for Business, Enterprise & Innovation (2017), Justice & Equality (2014-2017), Children & Youth Affairs (2011-2014), and Leader of the Opposition in the Seanad. Ciarán Cuffe is a Green MEP representing Dublin since 2019, and a member of the Industry, Research and Energy (ITRE) and, Transport and Tourism (TRAN) Committees, as well as the Parliamentary Delegations for relations with the United States and Albania. Mr. Cuffe has served as a city councillor, T.D. for Dún Laoghaire, and Minister of State for Horticulture, Sustainable Travel, Planning and Heritage. Dragoș Pîslaru has been an MEP from the Romanian Partidul Libertate, Unitate și Solidaritate (USR-PLUS), as part of the centrist liberal Renew Europe group since 2019. He is a member of the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs (ECON), Committee on Employment and Social Affairs (EMPL), Subcommittee on Tax Matters (FISC) and Parliamentary Delegation for relations with Japan (D-JP), and he was a  parliamentary rapporteur on the COVID-19 pandemic recovery fund. Dr. Pîslaru is a former Romanian government minister for Labour and Social Protection (2016-2017), and was previously a management consultant and economics lecturer before entering politics. The discussion was moderated by Professor Alan Barrett, CEO of the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI).

This event focuses on the challenges and opportunities for agriculture on the island of Ireland post-Brexit. The panel represents the views of the agri-food sector in both Ireland and Northern Ireland. In particular, it focuses on the effect of the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland for agriculture and what Northern Ireland’s continued participation in the EU Single Market for goods means for farmers on both sides of the border. About the Speakers: Tadhg Buckley is the Director of Policy and Chief Economist for the Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA), having been appointed in December 2020. He holds a Degree in Agricultural Science from University College Dublin as well as a Masters of Business Administration (MBA) from University of Limerick. Mr Buckley is also a Nuffield Scholar, a member of the Agricultural Science Association and a Qualified Financial Advisor. He is also actively involved in dairy farming on his home farm in North Cork. David Brown is a Deputy President of the UFU, having been elected in 2018. Within the UFU, Mr Brown represents the South-West Group on the beef and lamb committee. He is also a committee member of Fermanagh Grassland Club and has served as chairman. He is originally from Florencecourt, Co. Fermanagh, where he owns a cattle and sheep farm.