Ireland's EU Presidency: What it is and why it matters

On Wednesday, the eyes of Europe will fall on Ireland as the State assumes the Presidency of the European Union. It will be the eighth time Ireland has taken on the role since we joined the EEC in 1973. However, compared to previous presidencies, given the cycle of crises the EU has confronted in recent years, the stakes could not be higher: The sheer volume of legislation that the Government will be expected to steer through the EU’s law-making machinery could not be greater. In the first