Irish Presidency of the Council of the EU: strengthening Europe’s competitiveness, values and resilience through skills and lifelong learning
29/06/2026
As of 1 July 2026, Ireland assumes the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, marking the start of a six-month programme built around three core priorities: competitiveness, values, and security.
In a context of rapid economic, technological and geopolitical change, the Irish Presidency places strong emphasis on strengthening the European Union’s capacity to respond to transformation while remaining anchored in its fundamental principles. From EARLALL’s perspective, these priorities are closely aligned with the role of education, training and lifelong learning in supporting inclusive and sustainable regional development.
Competitiveness: skills at the heart of Europe’s economic future
Competitiveness is the central pillar of the Irish Presidency programme. The focus is on strengthening Europe’s productivity, completing the Single Market, and supporting innovation, investment and sustainable growth.
A key dimension of this agenda is the emphasis on reducing administrative barriers, enabling business growth across borders, and advancing Europe’s digital and green transitions. The programme highlights the importance of artificial intelligence, digital infrastructure, clean energy systems, and strategic technologies as drivers of future competitiveness.
For EARLALL, this priority strongly reinforces the importance of regional skills ecosystems. Lifelong learning systems, vocational education and training (VET), and adult upskilling are essential to ensuring that individuals and regions can adapt to labour market transformation. The Presidency’s focus on mobility, innovation, and Erasmus+ further highlights the need to expand inclusive learning opportunities across Europe.
Values: inclusion, equality and democratic resilience
The Irish Presidency also places strong emphasis on the Union’s shared values, including respect for human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and human rights.
These values underpin not only Europe’s identity, but also its social and economic model. The Presidency highlights the importance of strengthening equality policies, supporting youth engagement, and ensuring the protection of vulnerable groups, including persons with disabilities.
For EARLALL, this dimension is closely linked to the role of lifelong learning in promoting social cohesion and equal opportunities. Regional education and training systems play a key role in ensuring inclusive access to skills development, supporting second-chance learning pathways, and fostering active citizenship.
Security: resilience through skills and cooperation
The security priority reflects the broader geopolitical context facing the European Union, including ongoing conflicts and emerging threats. The Irish Presidency underlines the need to strengthen European resilience in all its dimensions, including economic, social, digital and energy security.
While primarily focused on defence and external action, this pillar also has important implications for skills and education policy. Strengthening resilience requires a workforce equipped to respond to technological change, cybersecurity challenges, and structural economic shifts.
For EARLALL, this reinforces the importance of lifelong learning systems that support adaptability, integration and inclusion, particularly in regions facing demographic change, skills shortages or migration-related challenges.
Erasmus+, mobility and European cooperation
Across all three pillars, the Irish Presidency highlights the importance of European cooperation instruments, including Erasmus+ and policies supporting educational mobility.
Ensuring that mobility opportunities are inclusive and accessible remains a key priority for strengthening European cohesion and enabling equal opportunities for learners, trainees and workers across all regions.
We invite you to explore the full programme for further details.
The emphasis on democratic resilience and social inclusion further reinforces the need for education systems that support critical thinking, participation, and equal access to opportunity across all regions.