EM Ireland CEO Noelle O Connell this morning (19 May 2021) addressed the Oireachtas Joint Committee on EU Affairs highlighting key findings of the annual EM Ireland ‘Ireland and the EU’ RED C Research Poll:

“The key finding of 84% agreeing that Ireland should remain part of the EU remains encouraging and consistent. However, a significantly lower figure of 53% saying that the EU is moving in the right direction suggests the strong support for EU membership cannot be taken for granted in the years ahead.

“Irish people remain positively disposed towards the EU, but support is not unequivocal and it should not be taken for granted. In a world that is changing fast, old certainties are becoming new uncertainties. Simple things like time with friends and family, going to work and the freedom to travel have been taken away. Freedoms that we once may have taken for granted were lost unexpectedly. Our economies are devastated and our societies fractured. The EU will be central to our collective recovery an its future legitimacy and public support will depend on how it responds to these challenges. Ireland’s position as an active, engaged and progressive Member State will be central to that effort but that position can only be maintained with the support of the Irish people and that support must be earned, and trust maintained through action and engagement.”

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