Ireland sets health agenda for EU presidency with focus on biotech and digital medicine
Ireland has outlined an ambitious health agenda for its European Union Council presidency, prioritising the bloc’s life sciences competitiveness, digital health infrastructure and cardiovascular disease prevention, while leaving more specific regulatory questions – including the governance of tobacco and novel nicotine products – to sector-level policy discussions.
The priorities emerged in a written parliamentary answer from Jennifer Carroll MacNeill, the minister for health, in response to a question from Deputy Colm Burke on Ireland’s contribution to the 18-month Trio Presidency programme being developed jointly with Lithuania and Greece.
The minister confirmed that the overarching Trio programme is structured around three strategic pillars – a free and democratic Europe, a strong and secure Europe, and a prosperous and competitive Europe – and does not address tobacco or novel nicotine products directly, describing the programme as a high-level strategic document…
