Harris welcomes election of Mairead McGuinness as vice president of European People's Party
Tánaiste Simon Harris has welcomed the election of Mairead McGuinness as vice-president of the European People's Party (EPP).
The EPP Congress took place in Valenica, Spain, where EPP delegates elected a new EPP presidency, including a new party president, 10 vice-presidents, a secretary general, and treasurer.
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The EPP includes 84 parties and partners from 44 countries, the President of the European Commission, the President of the European Parliament, 12 EU heads of state and government, and 13 members of the European Commission.
The EPP Group is the largest political group in the European Parliament with 188 Members from all EU Member States.
Speaking after the vote, the Tánaiste said: 'I am delighted that Mairead McGuinness has been elected by her colleagues from across Europe to serve as a vice president of the EPP.
'The overwhelming level of support that Mairead received underlines the high regard she is held in across Europe being elected alongside other EU Prime Ministers and EU Commissioners.
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'Mairead's election is also a vote of confidence in the Fine Gael party. Fine Gael has not held a vice presidency position since the election of Minister Helen McEntee to the role in 2019.
"When I was elected leader of Fine Gael last year, I stated that one of my key priorities was increasing Fine Gael's engagement with the EPP and regaining the vice presidency position within the party."
'Mairead will bring a wealth of experience and a respected voice to this role where she will help shape the polices of the biggest political party in Europe.'
Following her election, Ms McGuinness said: 'I am very grateful to my EPP colleagues for expressing confidence in me to serve as their vice president.
"The EU faces significant uncertainty given current geopolitical instability at present and therefore Ireland's voice at the heart of the EPP has never been more important.
'I want to thank all my colleagues who expressed confidence in me today by electing me to this position. I look forward to beginning my work immediately."
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