The European Commission representation in Ireland held a Christmas reception to bid farewell to its head of representation Barbara Nolan at its new 'Europe House' building just off Chatham Street, beside Grafton Street, in Dublin on Thursday night. Colleagues and ambassadors joined Barbara Nolan, along with key speakers Minister for Finance Jack Chambers and former Commissioner for Financial Stability, Financial Services and Capital Markets Union Mairead McGuinness.
The European Commission representation in Ireland held a Christmas reception to bid farewell to its head of representation Barbara Nolan at its new 'Europe House' building just off Chatham Street, beside Grafton Street, in Dublin on Thursday night.
Colleagues and ambassadors joined Barbara Nolan, along with key speakers Minister for Finance Jack Chambers and former Commissioner for Financial Stability, Financial Services and Capital Markets Union Mairead McGuinness.
The event marked Barbara’s 35-year career with the Commission.
Mairead McGuinness congratulated Barbara for her outstanding contribution and dedication to the Commission, serving as head of office.
She shared how much she enjoyed working with Barbara over the years and highlighted the power of personal contact in communicating how Europe matters.
They engaged with schools together, among many other key areas of work over the years.
Speaking on the important contribution Ireland has to make in Europe, McGuinness highlighted how Ireland needs more numbers in EU institutions and the importance of the next generation in this regard.
Finance minister
Minister Chambers firstly congratulated Mairead and thanked her for her service in Europe, as she passes the baton to newly elected Commissioner Michael McGrath.
On behalf of the Irish government, he congratulated Barbara on her great work and success as head of representation in Ireland.
He touched on some of the key challenges faced during Barbara’s term in office, including the global financial crisis, Brexit, COVID and the Ukraine war.
He also noted how Ireland will resume the presidency of the Council of the European Union again in 2026 and the opportunities this will bring.
Farewell
Barbara thanked her colleagues in the Commission and key partners, friends and family for their support over the years.
She thanked the Irish government for a scholarship to study at the College of Europe in Brugge, the first step in leading her to a great career with the Commission.
As head of representation, she said she was privileged to have one of the best jobs in the Commission and “to get this job twice was the icing on the cake”.
She reflected on how proud she was of the Commission’s first garden at Bloom this year, winning triple gold at the event, with the core message on sustainability and how she was proud of the Commission’s exhibit at Ploughing this year, having a fresh new look and approach.
Barbara ended by congratulating Mairead McGuinness on her outstanding career with the Commission and emphasised how she represented our country fantastically well.
She said both herself and Mairead were working on new chapters in their lives and that she hopes to stay active.
Dr Vanessa Woods is the CEO of Vanessa B Woods Communications.
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