Mattie McGrath: Warns Ireland will overpay under EU 7-year deal
Mattie McGrath spoke in a Dáil debate about the EU's 1.8 trillion, seven-year budget package and argued Ireland will pay disproportionately more and receive less. He criticised Ireland's negotiating stance, warned of a net contribution of 15.7 billion euro and highlighted per-person costs and domestic consequences.
Key claims about the EU budget
He said 27 member states signed off on a 1.8 trillion package to fund the next seven years and cited reports listing Ireland as the fifth-highest contributor with a net contribution of 15.7 billion euro over the period.
Per-capita cost and international comparisons
He claimed every man, woman and child in Ireland would face contributions of 3,201 and said that figure was almost twice Germany's per-person cost and three times that of France, which he quoted as 780 per person. He noted only a few countries - Germany, France, the Netherlands and Sweden - would contribute more in total, and that Ireland ranks high when measured as a percentage of GDP, only ahead of Luxembourg.
Criticism of Ireland's negotiating approach
He criticised Ireland for accepting terms without sufficient pushback, saying frugal countries fought for write-downs while Ireland received none. He argued it is the duty of representatives to "rattle the cages" and fight for Ireland rather than acquiesce to the larger powers.
Domestic impacts and past experience
He warned the CAP would be decimated and pointed to people on the dole, the homeless and struggling farmers as those who will suffer. He recalled past rescue measures, saying "we were crippled with the so-called bailout, and it wasn't the bailout, it was a total clean out," as evidence of a lack of solidarity.
Administrative concerns and appeals
He reported officials told deputies that Ireland had not yet applied for EU funding during the pandemic while other countries were already applying and receiving money. He repeatedly referenced the term "Magos" when describing the funding process and expressed frustration at the handling of negotiations and applications.
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Minister Corbyn and Teachta, the Teachta told me in question of promised legislation that they want to know what planet I was on, but he's not even here to listen to the debate, and this did happen, and Deputy Keno is right, they do leave all of this before we speak, and Tara Brun is here I think, 27 member states signed off on a 1.8 trillion package to fund the next 7 years of spending, and it is fairly obvious that we didn't come out well out of it, Michal Madden, the Taoiseach, said that he thinks the package will stand Europe in good stead into the future, good man, Minister Brun said that it is true that we will pay more than we receive, and that it is difficult to estimate how much we will contribute, but it will be substantial, but if I went to the mat, or anyone else went to the mat for our family and came home, told their wife and told the men of the house, we sought the cattle, but we didn't know how much they made, then we'd be laughed, and we wouldn't be laughed, we wouldn't be going again, as simple as that, So while the figures are hard to find, German media have reported that figures on the EU budget for the next 7 years, which lists Ireland as the 5th highest contributor to the EU, a net contribution of 15.7 billion euro over the next 7 years, that's pretty stark, only 4 countries, the Cahar tier, Germany, France, Holland and Sweden, are to contribute more than us, and when we look at our contribution as percentage of GDP, we have the second highest contribution in terms of GDP for every man, woman and child in this state, only head of Luxembourg, that's pretty stark, over the weekend we have had an awful lot of criticisms of the frugals, the frugal countries, whether it be 4 or 5, they were right, they stood up and fought for that country, we are the goodbyes in Europe, we are the lackeys, we accept everything and nod, they got write-offs, huge write-offs on what they were supposed to pay, write-downs, and we got nothing, for me to go by in the class, we got Swedes probably, my goodness, as I said, in fact the top 5 contributors, 3 of them, 3 of them, Germany and the Netherlands and Sweden, received significant write-downs, in their contributions, because they were the frugal countries, and they kicked up and they rattled the cages, and that's our duty, it's our duty when we go to Europe, it's to rattle the cages, and fight for Ireland, not to be adoring the prima donnas in the European project, and how good we are in Ireland, and how our economy is so strong, and blunder and bluss, that's what it is, ask the people who are on the dole, ask the people that are homeless, ask the farmers who are struggling, the cap is going to be decimated too, so I'm not going to be on negative, there has been good things, David Madden told me this morning, all the money we got from Europe over the last 40 years, we did, it's just like talking about the talk, I said we had a lunch yesterday, another dinner we had an hour ago, that's gone, done, it's the future I'm worried about, we were crippled with the so-called bailout, and it wasn't the bailout, it was a total clean out, we knew there was no solidarity then, so they kicked us in the teeth, and we laid down, and we're still lying down, and accepting what they're going to get, the European project is in shaky waters, I know that, I can see it, anybody watching can see it, because the big countries don't want to, and they fight for their rights, and they've got the right downs, I think that we now, every man, woman and child in Ireland today, will pay back contributions of 3,201, for every man, woman and child, as I said, in the country, almost twice as much as Germany, and three times as much as the French, who only contribute 780 per man, woman and child, so something really, really bad there, Minister, and Cahilloc, and you were here, Cahilloc, last week, over in that corner, when, I am sharing, I'm sharing, I'm sharing, I had four minutes, and, the other two, yeah, I had four, and they had two and a half each, sorry, a big one, you heard last week, the officials over here, in the absence of the Minister of Finance, tell us, that we hadn't applied to the EU for any funding yet, in the middle of this deep pandemic, or scam thing, or whatever they call it, it's beggars' belief, they told us that they hadn't applied for any money yet, while Germany are spending the money, and other countries that they've applied for, and got, it's called Magos. It's called Magos. It's called Magos.
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