Staff teams from the European Commission (EC), European Central Bank (ECB), and International Monetary Fund (IMF) visited Dublin during January 10-19 for the regular quarterly review of the government’s economic programme. The teams’ assessment is that the programme is on track but challenges remain and continued steadfast policy implementation will be key. The EC and IMF missions will seek approval for the completion of this review from the relevant EU bodies and the IMF Executive Board respectively.

Click here [5 MB] to listen to the Opening Statement by Istvan Szekely of the European Commission.

A video of the press conference is available here.

Programme implementation remains strong.  The front-loaded fiscal consolidation is on track, with the 2011 deficit significantly below the programme targets. The Irish authorities have continued to advance wide-ranging reforms to restore the health of the financial system so it can support Ireland’s recovery. Reforms to enhance competitiveness and support growth and job creation are moving forward.

The substantial fiscal consolidation targeted for 2011 has been achieved with a margin. Budgetary measures of 3½ percent of GDP reduced the estimated general government deficit to about 10 percent, well within the programme target of 10.6 percent. This result was achieved despite weaker domestic demand, reflecting the authorities' strong revenue administration and firm expenditure control. Budget 2012 targets further consolidation of 2¾ percent of GDP to lower the deficit to 8.6 percent of GDP, and sets out a clear path to reach the 3 percent of GDP deficit target by 2015.

Major progress in strengthening and downsizing the banking system was made in 2011. The two pillar banks met the 2011 deleveraging targets with almost €15 billion of predominantly foreign assets sold at a better price than anticipated. Implementation of the strategy to restore the viability and solvency of the credit union sector is underway. More conservative, provisioning and disclosure guidelines will enhance the transparency of the banks’ 2011 financial statements.

Steps to support growth and job creation are being put in place. Reforms of sectoral wage agreements, to make wage-setting in occupations hard hit by recession more responsive to economic conditions, have been submitted to parliament. Asset disposal plans are being finalized with the primary goal of strengthening competition and efficiency in key sectors while securing value for the state.
Looking ahead, nonetheless, Ireland continues to face considerable challenges. Domestic demand remains subdued, unemployment high, and trading partner growth is slowing. As a result, projected GDP growth for 2012 has been revised down to ½ percent, from an estimated 1 percent in 2011.
  
In this more challenging environment, maintaining Ireland’s track record of strong programme implementation remains key to sustaining recovery and achieving Ireland’s return to capital markets. Accordingly, the authorities' priorities in first half of 2012 include publishing a fiscal responsibility bill to underpin the achievement of the budgetary consolidation. They are also working with lenders to promote efforts to address loan arrears, and they will publish a modernization of personal insolvency framework. The authorities are also strengthening the effectiveness of activation and training policies to help job seekers get back to work.

The objectives of Ireland’s EU-IMF supported programme are to address financial sector weaknesses and to put Ireland’s economy on the path of sustainable growth, sound public finances, and job creation, while protecting the poor and most vulnerable. The programme includes loans from the European Union and EU member states amounting to €45.0 billion and a €22.5 billion Extended Fund Facility with the IMF. Ireland’s contribution is €17.5 billion. Approval of the conclusion of this review will allow the disbursement of €3.2 billion by the IMF and €6.5 billion by the EU. The mission for the next programme review is scheduled for April 2011.

The Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, Dacian Cioloş  yesterday (Wednesday) with Simon Coveney TD, Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine. Speaking afterwards the Commissioner said Commissioner said:

"The Commission put on the table a strong proposal regarding the future of the CAP in terms of the budget. The agricultural sector remains a key sector for the European Union, not only for the economy but also for society. Therefore the Commission proposed a strong budget for the CAP. I'd like to thank the Irish Government for their support for our proposal. Ireland will play an important role in this process, as Ireland will have the Presidency of the Council in the first semester of 2013.

Adam Vaughan from St Cronan's Senior National School, Swords, Co Dublin has won the Galileo drawing competition.  The 10 year old's drawing, entitled "The Solar System", was selected as the winner of the Irish leg of the competition. As first prize  winner, one of the Galileo Satellites will be named after Adam and launched into space later this year.

The competition was organised by the European Commission to coincide with the creation of the EU's 'Galileo' satellite navigation system. In Ireland it was launched in September by the European Commissioner for Research, Innovation and Science, Máire Geoghegan-Quinn.

Children aged between 9 and 11 were asked make a drawing representing space and satellite navigation. The competition judges (David Moore, chairman and founder of Astronomy Ireland, Don Conroy, artist and environmentalist and Joan Flanagan, Education Officer in the European Commission Representation in Ireland) had the difficult task of selecting the winning drawing out of a total of 173 entries from schools all over Ireland.

During a four-day visit to Niger and Chad, Humanitarian Aid Commissioner Kristalina Georgieva announced that the Commission would be doubling its humanitarian aid to the African Sahel region to €95 million in response to the food crisis there. The funding surge comes on top of the €10 million that the Commission allocated to the region last November. It will lift over 2 million people out of the danger zone during the most critical period. This includes nearly 300,000 children under the age of two and pregnant and breastfeeding women.

"This crisis will bite from next month onward and we are now in a race against time", Commissioner Georgieva warned. She praised the government of Niger for their early recognition of the scale of this crisis and expressed hope that its consequences can be mitigated with early response, as it happened in 2010, when another drought-induced disaster was avoided in the region.

"This is another reason I am here today – to ensure that what we deliver is smart aid. We aim to target the people at the gravest risk using the fastest and most cost-effective actions and treatments", Commissioner Georgieva explained.

Approximately 22.9 million people in the region are beginning 2012 with huge uncertainty about how they will feed themselves and their families. A conservative estimate of the required response to the current scale of the crisis is 500 million EUR.

Environment Commissioner Janez Potočnik today (Thursday) welcomed the overwhelming support given by the European Parliament to an updated Directive on waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE). Currently only one third of electrical and electronic waste in the European Union is reported by EU Member States to be separately collected and appropriately treated. The existing binding EU collection target is 4 kg of WEEE per capita, representing about 2 million tons per year, out of around 10 million tonnes of WEEE generated per year in the EU.

By 2020, it is estimated that the volume of WEEE will increase to 12 million tons. The new target endorsed by Parliament, an ambitious 85% of WEEE generated, would ensure that around 10 million tons, or roughly 20kg per capita, would be separately collected in 2020.

The new WEEE Directive will also give EU Member States the tools to fight illegal export of waste more effectively. 

2012 has been designated as the European Year of Active Ageing.  The official launch took place this week in Copenhagen under the Danish EU Presidency. 

Eurofound (the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions) will be launching its new resource pack on active ageing at the event which constitutes a ‘one-stop-shop’ of background material on the many issues related to this topic.  The resource pack and details of Eurofound’s participation in the conference can be found on its website at www.eurofound.europa.eu. 

The European Commission has started legal action against Hungary over new legislation that came into force at the beginning of the year under Hungary's new constitution. Following several exchanges with the Hungarian authorities on the drafts of the new legislation – notably letters sent by President José Manuel Barroso, Vice-President Viviane Reding (EU Commissioner for Justice, Fundamental Rights and Citizenship) and Vice-President Olli Rehn (EU Commissioner for Economic and Monetary Affairs and the Euro) – the Commission has now concluded a detailed legal assessment of the new legislation adopted at the beginning of January.

For the Commission, the Hungarian legislation conflicts with EU law by putting into question the independence of the country's central bank and data protection authorities and by the measures affecting its judiciary.

The European Commission today (Thursday) adopted a new four-year strategy (2012-2015) that aims to further improve the welfare of animals in the European Union.

The Commission Communication identifies the lack of enforcement of EU legislation by Member States in a number of areas as one of the major issues adversely affecting animal welfare in the EU. Another brake on full and even implementation is the fact that the market does not provide sufficient economic incentives for compliance. The Communication also notes that many of the parties involved lack sufficient knowledge about animal welfare, while it points out gaps in EU legislation which make it harder to ensure adequate welfare conditions for some categories of animals.

To address these issues and concerns, the Strategy provides for a two-pronged approach: a proposal for a comprehensive animal welfare law and a reinforcement of current actions.

The European Commission published a study earlier this week analysing the important role small and medium sized enterprises play in creating more and better jobs. The study shows that 85% of net new jobs in the EU between 2002 and 2010 were created by small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs).

In Ireland however, the SME sector lost more than 128,000 jobs between 2007-2010, representing about 15 % of the total workforce although it still accounts for almost 67% of employment in the private sector. The SMEs sector’s contribution to the Irish economy, as measured by its gross value added, also fell by five percentage points, from 53 % to 48% between 2007-2010. A fact sheet on SMEs in Ireland is available here .

Monday 23 January: Eurogroup meeting, Brussels

Monday 23 January: Agriculture and Fisheries Council, Brussels

Monday 23 January: Foreign Affairs Council, Brussels

Tuesday 24 January: Economic & Financial Affairs Council, Brussels

Tuesday 24 January: Lecture by Dr Lukasz Kaminski, President of the IPN on the exhibition on “The Phenomenon of Solidarity: Pictures from the History of Poland, 1980–1981”

Monday 30 January: Informal Meeting of the European Council, Brussels

Tuesday 31 January: "European Economic Policy - What's in it for Ireland",  Athlone

Monday 6 February: "European Economic Policy - What's in it for Ireland", Sligo

Tuesday 7 February: ‘Marine Economy and the Atlantic Area Strategy’ Conference, Grand Hotel, Malahide

Wednesday 15 February: "European Economic Policy - What's in it for Ireland",  Limerick

The European Commission launched on 17 January a Europe-wide public debate on corporate restructuring and anticipating change.

The aim of the consultation is to identify successful practices and policies in the field of restructuring and adapting to change. The results will feed into the upcoming employment package and should help to improve further cooperation between workers and employers' representatives, government, local and regional authorities and the EU institutions.

The consultation will also help identify specific restructuring measures that could help deal with employment and social challenges, and help European companies improve competitiveness through innovation and a fast, but smooth adaptation to change.

The consultation period will run until 30 March 2012. During this period, anyone with an interest in the subject can submit their views via email or by post.

The European Commission has launched an on-line public consultation on possible measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from ships. 

This consultation seeks to collect opinions from stakeholders and experts in the field of shipping and climate change with a view to getting additional information on the shape of a possible Commission proposal.

All interested stakeholders can send their contributions until 12 April 2012.

To mark 2012 European Year of Active Ageing , two major EU studies are out today giving  new information about older people in Ireland and across the EU.

Both publications are rich in data – below are just some Irish highlights we have picked out.

1. Eurostat: Ireland has the lowest share of people aged over 55 in the EU

According to a new Eurostat publication, "Active ageing and solidarity between generations – a statistical portrait of the European Union 2012", in 2010 Ireland had the lowest share of people aged over 55 in the EU at 21.4% compared to just under 33% in Germany and Italy (EU average of 29.6%). The share of persons aged 55 and over in the total population increased between 1990 and 2010 in all Member States. On average across the EU, the share of people aged 55 and over increased from 24.5% in 1990 to 29.6% in 2010. The share of people aged over 55 in Ireland also increased although at a slower rate, from 19.3% in 1990 to 21.4% in 2010.

The employment rate of people aged 65 and over in Ireland was 8.6%, which is well above the EU average of 4.7% but well below countries like Portugal (16.5%), Romania (13.0%) and Cyprus (12.9%). 

2. Eurobarometer: Seventy-four per cent of Irish people surveyed are in favour of allowing work after 65 and 57% are against any compulsory retirement age.

To mark the start of the 2012 European Year of Active Ageing and Solidarity of Generations, the Commission presented last week a new Eurobarometer survey showing that 71% of Europeans are aware that Europe's population is getting older, but only 42% are concerned about this development.

This is in stark contrast with the perceptions of policy makers, who regard demographic ageing as a major challenge. For most citizens, people aged 55 years and older play a major role in key areas of society. Over 60% believe that we should be allowed to continue working after retirement age and one third says that they would like to work longer themselves. Surprisingly, people closer to retirement are more likely to share this view than the younger generation.

The Eurobarometer survey covers five areas: overall perceptions of age and older people; older people in the workplace; retirement and pensions; voluntary work and support for older people and an age-friendly environment.

Key results of the active ageing Eurobarometer survey

• Irish people are third most likely to see themselves as young at 51% compared to an EU average of 40%. Only people living in Cyprus (58%), Greece (54%) and Iceland (53%) were more likely to consider themselves as young.  By contrast only 27% of Germans think of themselves as young.
• The majority of Europeans (71%) are aware that the population is getting older, but this is a concern for only 42 %.  65% of Irish respondents are aware that the population is getting older and this is of concern to 37%.
• Definitions of 'old' and 'young' differ across countries. On average, Europeans believe that people start being considered as old just before 64 years (64.2 for Ireland) and are no longer considered young from the age of 41.8 years (39 for Ireland). 
• Most Europeans consider that older people play a major role in society and especially
  within their families (82% for EU and Ireland),
  in politics (71% for EU as a whole and 76% for Ireland),
  in the local community (70% and 73% for Ireland),
  or in the economy (67% and 69% for Ireland)
• Only one in three Europeans believes that the official retirement age will have to increase by 2030. However a majority of people in Denmark (58%), the Netherlands (55%), Ireland (53%), and the UK (51%) recognise the need for an increase in the official retirement age.
• 61% of Europeans support the idea that people should be allowed to continue working once they have reached the official retirement age. Irish people are more in favour with 74% supporting people being allowed to continue working after the official retirement age. Support was highest in Denmark (93%) and the Netherlands (91%).
• 53% of Europeans and 57% of Irish people reject the idea of a compulsory retirement age. However opinions across Europe varied strongly from 84% in Denmark and 83% and 83% in Iceland to 14% in Macedonia and 17% in Romania.
• For those who felt there should be a compulsory retirement age, the average age chosen across the EU was 64 years. However this varied from 69.9 years in Denmark to 53 years in Turkey and 59.5 years in Romania. In Ireland the 36% of people who felt that there should be a compulsory retirement age chose 66.9 years.
• One third of Europeans state that they would like to continue working after they reach the age when they are entitled to a pension. Irish people are much more likely to want to continue working at 46%. Across Europe, the percentage of people who wanted to continue working after they reach the age when they are entitled to a pension varied from 57% in Denmark and 56% in the UK to 16% in Slovenia.
• Part-time work combined with a partial pension would be more appealing than full retirement, to two thirds of Europeans. The combination of working with a partial pension appeals most in Sweden (90%), Denmark (87%), Iceland (86%), the Netherlands (84%), UK (82%), Finland (80%), Ireland (78%) and Belgium (78%).
• The majority of Europeans believe that their country and local area are 'age-friendly'. 63% of Irish respondents believe that Ireland is 'age-friendly', which is above the EU average of 57% but well below Luxembourg at 81%. Hungarians are least likely to think their country is 'age-friendly' at 21%. 
• When it comes to their local area, 64% of Irish respondents and 65% of EU respondents felt their local area was 'age-friendly'. Respondents in Denmark (80%) and Luxembourg (78%) were most likely to agree and respondents in Hungary least likely at 37%.  The most commonly mentioned improvements for making their local area more “age friendly” were more facilities for older people to stay fit and healthy (42% across the EU and 48% for Ireland) and improvements to public transport (40% across the EU and 45% for Ireland).
• Just over half of EU citizens (53%) feel that the use of technology to interact with customers instead of traditional means is a major obstacle for older people. However only 43% of Irish respondents considered technology to be a major obstacle.
• In tackling the challenges of ageing populations, most respondents believe older people's organisations and other NGOs, as well as religious organisations and churches, play the most important role. 72% of Irish respondents believed older people's organisations and other NGOs played a positive role and 65% believed religious organisations and churches played a positive role.

This Eurobarometer covers the 27 Member States and five non-EU countries; namely Croatia, Iceland, FYROM, Norway and Turkey. In Ireland 1,006 people were interviewed by Ipsos MRBI between 24 September and 7 October 2010.

For more information:

Special Eurobarometer 378: Active Ageing (Report and Factsheets)

Comparative information on EU member states in MEMO/12/10

See also:
Website of the European Year of Active Ageing and Solidarity between Generations
European Innovation Partnership on Active and Healthy Ageing

Publications:

Eurostat brochure - Active ageing and solidarity between generations – a statistical portrait of the European Union 2012
How to promote active ageing in Europe - EU support to local and regional actors
European Year for Active Ageing and Solidarity between Generations 2012