European Parliament elections take place across the EU in early June. These will be the tenth direct parliamentary elections since 1979. About 400 million voters are eligible to vote across 27 EU member states. At stake is the make-up of the next European Parliament, the direct link between Europeans and the EU's institutions and it will shape the direction of the EU over the next 5 years on issues like climate, migration, trade and defense.
Ireland is entitled to elect 14 representatives or MEPs across 3 constituencies (see below) to the 720 seat parliament.
- Dublin (4 seats)
- Midlands-North-West (5 seats)
- South (5 seats)
MEPs generally sit in political groups ranging from left to right, rather than by nationality.
My guest in this episode is Billy Kelleher (@BillyKelleherEU) of Fianna Fail who is up for re-election as an Ireland South MEP and member of the Renew Group. We discuss a range of topics including the future direction of the EU and the influence of the far right, security and trade risks posed by China, and whether Ireland is out of step with the EU on adoption of policy tools and a physical trade presence in Taiwan.
Date of Recording: May 5th, 2024.
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| EU Election 2024 - Interview with Billy Kelleher, Fianna Fail |
DIVE DEEPER:
Additional information on the topics covered in this episode:
- Billy Kelleher - Fianna Fail member page
- 2024 European Parliament election in Ireland - wiki
- Why European elections matter and how they work - Laura Gozzi and Paul Kirby, BBC News (May 1st, 2024)
- ETNC Report on Ireland - China Relations: From dragging its feet to breaking into a sprint - Alexander Davy, Analyst/Editor, MERICS (July 2023)
- Bullets not bees: EU ditches green focus ahead of June election - Zia Weise, Politico (April 11th, 2024)
- German far right picks EU candidate, wants European anti-migrant 'fortress' - Hans Von Der Burchard, Politico (July 30th, 2023)
- Germany spying: Far-right party aide held in China spy probe - Jessica Parker and Paul Kirby, BBC News (April 23rd, 2024)
- Irish MEP says Ukraine needs our support in restoring electricity infrastructure - James Cox, BreakingNews.ie (February 5th, 2023)
- Blinken says he challenged China's Xi on Russia war support - Emily Atkinson, BBC News (April 26th, 2024)
- Visualizing All the world's Carbon Emissions by Country - Visual Capitalist
- EU in TAIWAN - Perspectives with Neilo Podcast, May 2023
- Emmanuel Macron's urgent message for Europe - The Economist (May 2nd, 2024)
Note: In the interests of fairness, Perspectives with Neilo reached out to Ireland South electoral candidates from all the main groupings in the European Parliament. We are happy to publish interviews with all those who agreed to participate.
