Deal is good for Ireland and for EU

After almost 24 gruelling hours of squabbling between EU leaders, the Irish Government can afford to be well pleased at the outcome of negotiations on how Europe will spend almost €1tn between 2014 and 2020.

However, given the importance of an endgame with so much at stake, the beleaguered citizens of the 27-member EU club must be aghast at the appalling spectacle of overnight battles between representatives of competing nations trying to grind opponents to the point of exhaustion, a ridiculous scenario in which crucial decisions that will influence the lives of millions of Europeans should never be taken.

A sense of uncertainty continues to hang over the seven-year plan, which can only be described as an austerity budget. The result is that EU leaders are now on collision course with the European Parliament that threatens to overturn an outcome which, for the first time in its history, means the union will have to operate with less money in the coffers than ever before. As far as MEPs are concerned, Europe should be spending more money, not less, on its people.

Not surprisingly, given Ireland’s presidency of the EU, the deal has been welcomed by Taoiseach Enda Kenny. Effectively, it brings a roller coaster week of contrasting insights into his political judgement to a positive conclusion after the severe disappointment of his response to the Magdalene report.

A rare outburst of praise from the Irish Farmers’ Association, a powerful lobby group not given to clapping politicians on the back, will encourage him. Despite the continuing foul weather, not to mention the ominous threat to overturn yesterday’s outcome, farmers can afford to be magnanimous in the knowledge that key elements of the Common Agriculture Policy (CAP) will bring €1.5bn a year in direct income support for farmers and spending on rural development, a relatively low cut of nearly 4% on previous years. That’s a welcome relief for the farming sector which plays a vital role at the heart of the Irish economy. The promise of €100m for the Border, Midland, and West region is also a boost.

A major hurdle has now been cleared on the potentially tortuous path of Ireland’s EU presidency and so it was predictable that the Taoiseach would describe the outcome as “a good deal for Ireland and for Europe” . Even more succinctly, it was summed up on Twitter by European Council president Herman Van Rompuy, who chaired the event, as “deal done”. Yet the naked rivalry between its competing nations and sectors, raises major questions about Europe’s political, economic and social direction.