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Disability Rights in the Irish Presidency of the Council

Disability Rights in the Irish Presidency of the Council

Ireland assumes the Presidency of the Council of the European Union on 1 July 2026. The Council is one of the 3 main EU institutions, and its Presidency changes every 6 months.

This means Ireland will now chair all the relevant Council formations and technical bodies, such as the Education, Employment, and Social Affairs Council meetings of the national ministers (EPSCO) or the Social Questions Working Party meetings, which usually discuss issues related to disability. Therefore, they are the most important point of contact to influence the work of the Council until the end of 2026.

Ireland will also oversee the remaining work on the Council’s position regarding the next long-term EU budget (also known as the Multiannual Financial Framework). There is also a possibility that Ireland will oversee the first interinstitutional negotiations on some of the files, depending on how quickly the Parliament and the Council approve their respective positions.

Priorities

The Irish Presidency has built its Programme around 3 priorities under the motto ‘Strength with unity‘:

  • On competitiveness – fostering prosperity and wellbeing
  • On values – upholding the foundation of the European Union
  • On security – protecting citizens

The Presidency specifically mentions persons with disabilities in its programme, saying under the second priority that it will “champion the full participation of disabled people in Europe’s social and economic life”.

Some relevant priorities are:

  • Digitalisation, including Artificial Intelligence and protection of citizens (including children) online;
  • Equality and the promotion of human rights, including women’s rights, gender equality and the rights of LGBTIQ+ persons;
  • Employment, supporting quality jobs within modern labour markets;
  • Prevention and health innovation, including mental health;
  • Democracy and the rule of law, including the European Democracy Shield and the EU Strategy for Civil Society;
  • EU’s support to Ukraine and accession negotiations with Ukraine, Albania, Moldova and Montenegro.

Disability advocacy

EDF is already in touch with the Irish Presidency and with our Irish member, the Disability Federation of Ireland, to ensure that disability rights are in the focus. We will work closely together to plan disability-related events in Ireland in October, including an EDF Board meeting, and we will also draw up our regular Presidency Scorecard.

More information: EDF Disability Priorities for the Presidency Trio Ireland-Lithuania-Greece (2025)

Relevant events

A full list of events can be found on the Presidency website. This is a selection with relevant events for our policy areas: