Brussels (The Brussels Morning Newspaper) – Midlands North West MEP Maria Walsh expresses the Government must not forget about European Projects in the forthcoming budget.
Fine Gael MEP for Midlands North West Maria Walsh has emphasised that Budget 2025 must not forget about European projects and priorities, including Nature Restoration Law, vital infrastructure projects and an increased budget on mental health services. As the Government schedules to announce Budget 2025, the Midlands-North West MEP has called for a method that ensures Ireland’s commitments to both European and domestic priorities are evaluated and appropriately balanced.
What European projects does Maria Walsh want to be prioritized?
MEP Walsh stated that European legislation and programmes have had a monumental influence on the Irish people since Ireland joined the European Community. Having functioned for five years as an MEP, Maria Walsh was again elected recently and said that she knows how to get things done in Brussels.
“I have delivered change for my constituents across agriculture, the economy, equality and mental health. Since being elected, I’ve performed on key EU policies including Equal Pay legislation, the European Care Strategy, CAP and the EU Traineeship report”
she said.
Moreover according to her, protecting Ireland’s economic competitive benefit on the European stage has been a core priority of mine, as has backing female entrepreneurs. She has developed the concept of the Female Founders’ Fund, the first of its kind in the EU, to deliver female business owners with much-required capital. As one of the Chief Negotiators on the EU’s Pay Transparency Directive, she has also delivered legislation which ensures that Irish women obtain the same pay as their male colleagues.
On healthcare, she has campaigned day in and day out to put mental health on the European political agenda. Death by suicide is the second highest cause of death for young people in the EU. To combat this crisis, she has laboured closely with President Ursula Von der Leyen and the European Commission to ensure mental health is accounted for across European policy.Â