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Michael McGrath’s new EU justice job is a win, but not the one Government wanted

Ireland continues to labour under misplaced belief that it punches above its weight in Europe

Former finance minister Michael McGrath was named as the next EU commissioner for democracy, justice and the rule of law. Photograph: Brian Lawless/PA Wire
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Jack Power in Strasbourg
Tue Sept 17 2024 - 17:44

Ireland securing the European Union commissioner portfolio covering justice is a win, just maybe not the result the Government was hoping for.

When each EU country told European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen what type of job they wanted for commissioner nominees they were putting forward, more than half had their eyes on some kind of economic or financial portfolio. With competition being intense for a handful of jobs, when it came down to it von der Leyen owed Ireland no favours.

Former finance minister Michael McGrath was named as the next EU commissioner for democracy, justice and the rule of law. The role will see the Fianna Fáil politician pull up member states such as Hungary who are breaching the rule of law, as well as overseeing data protection regulations, and a new plan to tackle online interference by foreign powers.

Justice is seen as a decent middle of the road portfolio that carries some heft. If he can forge a good working relationship with the commission president, McGrath could use the role to become an influential figure around the table in Brussels.

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Von der Leyen and her small group of advisers have been carefully planning the delicate balancing act of deciding what jobs to hand out to each country’s nominee for weeks.

McGrath came into the frame for the justice job more than a week ago, according to several sources. It is believed Renew, the European political grouping Fianna Fáil belong to, wanted one of “their” commissioners in the job, which accounts for a large part of the reason behind Ireland ending up with justice.

When soundings were first taken from the Government, the reaction afterwards in some quarters was unsure. There appeared to be some trepidation about settling for a role that wasn’t finance-related. Justice was not an area that was in McGrath’s traditional wheelhouse.

As a country with a strong economy, the decision to send a sitting finance minister should have put Ireland in with a good chance of pushing for a position in that area. However, unlike some capitals, Dublin had no leverage over von der Leyen.

[ What does the EU commissioner for justice do? ]

The Government had ignored her request for countries to propose two names, with at least one being a woman, so she could build a gender-balanced team of commissioners. Fianna Fáil’s four MEPs had been vocal in their opposition to a second von der Leyen commission, voting against her in a European Parliament confirmation vote back in July.

One mark in his favour was that McGrath came across as competent and solid in his sit-down interview with von der Leyen late last month.

What EU portfolio a country bags every five years can be a game of snakes and ladders and one that Ireland is not considered to play very well. Finland, a country with a similar size population to Ireland’s, was rewarded this week by staying on von der Leyen’s good side.

Finland was one of the other countries that nominated its commissioner pick early. But unlike Ireland, the Finnish government went with a woman candidate – Henna Virkkunen, a former minister and current MEP – as their choice. Virkkunen was made an “executive vice president” responsible for digital and tech policy, one of six more senior positions in the next commission, where she will sit above McGrath.

At one point there was concern Ireland could find itself left with a commissioner job a lot closer to the bottom end of the table. The fact the commissioner for justice role was received with some initial disappointment, rather than being seen as a political lifebuoy, suggests the Government is still clinging to an outdated or perhaps misplaced belief Ireland can punch above its weight in Europe.