Laois Chamber Alliance CEO, Caroline Hofman, travelled to Brussels recently as part of a delegation from Chambers Ireland.
Ms. Hofman was the only representative who attended from the Midlands region, with meetings taking place across the city including in the European Parliament and European Commission.
This visit to Brussels offered an important opportunity to engage at a European level on the needs of Irish businesses and to find out more on how the European Union policy agenda is pushing to meet these needs.
Ms. Hofman represented Laois Chamber Alliance at a number of high level meetings.
This included briefings with the Head of the Irish Regions European Office, Teresa Lennon, a meeting with a number of Irish MEPs at the European Parliament including Ireland South MEPs who represent Laois, as well as briefings at the European Commission, including with Mr Matthieu Ballu, Directorate General for Energy, and briefings with the Office of the Northern Ireland Executive in Brussels.
Speaking following her visit to Brussels, Ms. Hofman said: “These policy visits to Brussels are a crucial element of the lobbying Laois Chamber Alliance carries out on behalf of our members.
“We had a jam-packed schedule of briefings and meetings across the two days.
“In particular, our meeting with Teresa Lennon, Head of Irish Regions European Office, was significant and extremely relevant for Laois, as there is a significant amount of European funding we can avail of here in the county, and something we will be following up on.
“We also had a number of briefings in the European Commission, regarding market access, SMEs, legal affairs, technology and security, economic and financial policy, and energy policy.
“Our MEPs are involved in crucial committees and policy making in the European Parliament, which ultimately shapes our policy at home in Ireland, and this visit also provided a crucial opportunity to meet with them to discuss what policy changes need to be made.”
