Colm Markey, a dairy farmer from Togher, Co Louth, is to take the place of Mairead McGuinness in the European Parliament after her appointment to the European Commission.

McGuinness, an MEP since 2004, was chosen by Commission president Ursula von der Leyen to replace Phil Hogan following his resignation. McGuinness has been allocated the financial services and stability portfolio, with Hogan’s old trade portfolio moving to Latvia’s Valdis Dombrovskis.

McGuinness, who is well-known in farming circles, said she was honoured to have been selected.

Markey is a Fine Gael councillor for Co Louth and a former president of Macra na Feirme. He has been a councillor since 2009 and will now become an MEP for the Midlands-North West.

There’s always going to be a push for higher standards

Speaking to the Irish Farmers Journal, Markey said agriculture would be one of his main priorities. He identified the division of the CAP budget and the need to reward farmers delivering high environmental standards as two key areas.

“There’s always going to be a push for higher standards – we have to make sure they are realistic and it’s on an incentive basis rather than the stick.”

Markey said it was his intention to sit on the Parliament’s agriculture committee, as McGuinness had.

“If you go back over the years, agriculture has been the key plank of European policy and while other things have gained more significance, agriculture still remains a very important part of it.

“Mairead had a very strong agricultural background. I think in her absence, it’s important that I am in there.”

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