Belgium and the Netherlands threw their support behind a bid by Paschal Donohoe to retain the presidency of the Eurogroup for a second term as finance ministers met and began the election process in Brussels.
The Irish Government has proposed that Mr Donohoe should remain president of the powerful club of finance ministers after his term ends in January, meaning that a separate Irish finance minister appointed in the coming reshuffle would also attend the meetings.
Asked about the Irish proposal, Belgium’s minister for finance and deputy prime minister Vincent Van Peteghem made his support for Mr Donohoe clear.
“I find that Paschal is the right man in the right place,” he told The Irish Times.
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“I think that it’s important that in very uncertain times, as we have today, that we have some stability, that we also have some continuity in this position. And therefore I fully support also his candidacy for the position of president of the Eurogroup for a second time.”
Dutch minister for finance Sigrid Kaag also expressed support for the bid.
“We appreciate the role that Paschal Donohoe has performed so far immensely, and I think it’s also important we consider the value of continuity in times of great economic uncertainty and potential crisis, hence his experience, the way he delivers on his role, we value immensely,” she said.
Finland’s minister for finance Annika Saarikko said she was “open” to the discussion about Ireland’s proposal, which is designed to reconcile Mr Donohoe’s hopes to stay on as Eurogroup president with a Coalition agreement that the finance portfolio should transfer to Fianna Fáil when the position of taoiseach rotates in December.
“I’ve been very satisfied with Paschal’s work as a president of the Eurogroup,” Ms Saarikko told The Irish Times.
“He’s been very co-operative and a good leader of the group and if some discussion is needed when it comes to the second term and the situation in Ireland of course, I’m open for that discussion.”
There was some optimism in Government circles on Monday about the chances of Mr Donohoe’s success, but officials will await news of other nominations anxiously, particularly looking at Spanish minister for finance Nadia Calviño, who Mr Donohoe defeated in an election for the post in 2020.
An official from one of the large EU member states said their position would depend on what candidates are put forward to run against Mr Donohoe.
“He needs to inform us about his new role in the Irish Government,” the official said. “We need to see who the candidates are, and then we’ll see how things go.”
“Our position is that he has been a good president of the Eurogroup,” the official added.
The Government’s proposal is unusual because presidents of the Eurogroup are usually finance ministers, and typically there is only one representative in the room for each of the member states that uses the euro.
Mr Donohoe would be moved to the portfolio of minister for public expenditure and reform in the reshuffle, while the finance ministry is expected to go to Fianna Fáil’s Michael McGrath.
The election process kicked off on Monday, when member states were informed they would have until November 24th to submit potential candidates for the Eurogroup presidency, and that a vote would take place when they next meet on December 5th.
Mr Donohoe said he would refrain from speculating on the potential outcome of the vote until the ballots “are counted”.
“Initially, I have got a positive response to staying on as president of the Eurogroup,” Mr Donohoe told The Irish Times.
“But the process only begins today and I need to explain to all of my colleagues now how that will work in detail, and explain it to them and answer their questions on it.”
Under the agreement between Fine Gael, Fianna Fáil and the Green Party, when Micheál Martin leaves the Taoiseach’s office in December and Leo Varadkar takes over, the two parties will also swap the finance portfolio.
While the membership of the Eurogroup is comprised of the finance ministers of the countries that use the single currency, there is a precedent for the group to be headed by a second country representative – though officials say there may still be some resistance to the idea.
