As Ireland took over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union on 1 July, competitiveness and simplification will continue to dominate the European agenda for the next six months. Building on the work of the Cypriot Presidency, Dublin has made clear that reducing unnecessary administrative burdens and improving the way EU legislation is developed and implemented will be a central objective of their agenda.
From a Ceemet perspective, this direction is welcome. Simplification should not be seen solely as a tool to support industrial competitiveness or economic growth. It must also benefit the implementation of social legislation, which is extensive in the EU.
At a CEPS event on 11 June 2026 titled “Ireland’s EU presidency: delivering on competitiveness”, Ambassador Cáit Moran outlined the incoming Presidency’s ambitious agenda to deepen the EU single market, enhance economic resilience and drive digital and energy policies. During the discussion, simplification was presented less as a standalone legislative initiative than as a new way of working across policy areas. This horizontal approach is expected to shape discussions on several flagship files, including the Industrial Accelerator Act, the Single Market agenda and the upcoming Multiannual Financial Framework.
Irish Presidency’s social agenda
The Irish Presidency’s programme for the Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs Council (EPSCO) sets out an ambitious vision that links social policy directly to competitiveness. Ireland has framed its EPSCO priorities around the conviction that European values, including rights, tolerance, solidarity and non-discrimination, are not just abstract ideals but practical economic and social advantages that underpin the fairness, trust and stability of the system.
This framing finds an echo among Irish business. In its EU Presidency campaign report, Ibec, Ireland’s largest employer body, calls on the Presidency to ensure that the EU recognises and fully reflects individual Member State industrial relations models when developing new social or labour market policies, and to champion a competitiveness check on all social files so that new administrative burdens are removed or streamlined where they do not address a proven regulatory gap. These are priorities that Ceemet shares.
Three key EPSCO workstreams deserve particular attention from Ceemet and its members.
1. The Quality Jobs Roadmap and Act
The Irish Presidency will advance the Commission’s Quality Jobs Roadmap and support the forthcoming Quality Jobs Act, a legislative proposal expected in December 2026. The Roadmap outlines initiatives to align employment policy with the needs of a fast-evolving economy, focusing on creating and maintaining quality jobs, boosting digital innovation while promoting quality employment, ensuring fair working conditions, promoting social dialogue and maintaining effective enforcement.
Ceemet has consistently argued that Europe already benefits from some of the highest labour standards globally and that the Roadmap should build on this foundation rather than add new regulatory layers. In its position paper submitted during the Commission consultation, Ceemet stressed that skills are the key to ensuring future quality employment and that re- and upskilling policies must be tailored to labour market needs. The MET industries already provide millions of stable, well-paid and innovative jobs supported by collective agreements that adapt working conditions to the evolving world of work. Any new legislative initiative should respect this reality. The Ibec report reinforces this point, arguing that the EU should place greater emphasis on supporting development through upskilling and retraining rather than introducing new legislation, and avoid adding to the implementation challenges businesses already face.
2. The Fair Labour Mobility Package
Expected to be published in autumn during the Irish Presidency, the Fair Labour Mobility Package is a priority under the One Europe, One Market Roadmap. It aims to promote a more efficient EU labour market through enhanced worker mobility, better workers’ rights and a level playing field across Member States. Key components include the digital European Social Security Pass (ESSPASS) and the strengthening of the European Labour Authority (ELA).
Labour mobility is essential for the MET industries, where cross-border supply and value chains are the standard. Ceemet has long supported the digitalisation of social security coordination through ESSPASS, calling for it to move beyond the pilot phase to become a fully operational tool that cuts red tape and encourages mobility. At the same time, Ceemet has flagged that the current rules on posting, social security coordination and cross-border service provision remain excessively complex. Companies, especially SMEs, struggle daily with overlapping and inconsistent requirements when sending employees across borders. The EU reached a provisional agreement to revise Regulation (EC) No 883/2004 on the coordination of social security systems, which is a nice first step if the European Parliament plenary approves it.
Overall, Ceemet and MEP employers favour an open approach to EU labour markets, recognising that inward migration and barrier-free mobility remain indispensable to addressing labour shortages, a widening skills gap and an ageing workforce across Europe.
3. Simplification of the social acquis
While the Presidency has confirmed that simplification efforts will extend to social legislation, Ceemet notes a persistent gap. When the European Commission published its Communication on “A Simpler, Clearer and Better Enforced EU Rulebook” in April 2026, Ceemet broadly welcomed the initiative but pointed out that social policy was notably absent from the 12 priority areas identified for regulatory deep cleaning.
Together with fellow employer organisations EBF, HOTREC and WEC-Europe, Ceemet has called openly for a simplification of the social acquis, now comprising more than 70 pieces of legislation developed at different times under different political circumstances. The employers’ joint position is clear: this is not about deregulation, but about making existing rules clearer, more coherent and more workable for companies of all sizes. Ceemet urges the Commission to extend the deep cleaning exercise to the social and employment acquis as a matter of priority.
Cross-cutting themes: AI, skills and occupational health
Beyond the core EPSCO files, the Irish Presidency programme touches on several themes that intersect with Ceemet’s policy work.
On artificial intelligence, the Presidency plans to propose Council Conclusions on skills and competences for the AI era, promoting flexible learning that supports educators and facilitates inclusion. This resonates with Ceemet’s comprehensive position paper on AI at the workplace, published in June 2025, which underscored AI’s potential to boost growth, safety and competitiveness, provided it is regulated with realism and restraint. Ceemet has stressed that existing frameworks including the AI Act, GDPR and EU directives on worker consultation already provide solid safeguards, and that adding further legislative layers would be counterproductive, especially for SMEs.
On occupational health and safety, the Irish Presidency will advance collective efforts to improve workplace safety, focusing on protecting all workers from work-related injury and ill-health. Ceemet supports evidence-based OSH legislation and has called for directives that emphasise the principle of individual capability, are firmly grounded in scientific knowledge and avoid unnecessary administrative burdens.
On skills and education, the Presidency programme emphasises STEM education, lifelong learning and the Erasmus+ programme, all areas where Ceemet sees strong alignment with industry needs. Ceemet has consistently argued that investing in vocational education and training, particularly apprenticeships and cross-border learning mobility, is essential for ensuring the competitiveness of European industry in the years ahead.
Implementation and enforcement is finally a shared priority
One area where the Irish Presidency and Ceemet find common ground is the emphasis on implementation and enforcement over new legislation. The Presidency programme explicitly acknowledges that the demand for new legislation often arises not because of legislative gaps but because existing rules are not fully interpreted and enforced. This mirrors Ceemet’s long-standing position claiming that stronger enforcement of existing rules should take precedence over the introduction of new regulation.
Ceemet will continue to advocate for a balanced approach, one that combines economic competitiveness with a strong and effective social Europe, ensuring that simplification works for all policy areas, including social affairs. The Irish Presidency’s commitment to extending simplification to social legislation is a welcome signal. The challenge now is to translate that commitment into concrete action over the next six months.