My fourth point is on housing. Europe is facing a housing crisis, a crisis of affordability, access, and quality. Our citizens are calling for actions, and we are responding. Under your presidency, we aim to launch a European Housing Alliance, and we will convene a high-level European Housing Summit. This is one of the defining social challenges of our time, and people expect us to deliver. Europe bridging the gap – we have struggled long to move from test to scale, and that was yesterday also the mood at the visit. They have said we have all the ingredients that are necessary: we have the talent, we have the innovation, the research and development, we have the infrastructure, we have the capital if we get a Capital Markets Union. But what we now need is scale. And I think this, as I said, sets the tone for this presidency. This also brings me to our first priority: a competitive European economy that provides good jobs for Europe. The task ahead is clear: outside our borders we must keep moving on diversification. This year has already delivered one trade agreement breakthrough after another. At the Irish presidency will be central to getting deals with India and Mexico operational. Speed, more partners, growing our exports while very crucially reducing our dependence. The more we are diversified, the less we are dependent on a single supplier. Of course at home we must keep building the industrial capacity we need to create jobs and growth and to better stand shocks. For this we have our roadmap: the One Europe One Market. As you set, all three institutions have committed to it to deliver till the end of 2027. This roadmap spans over 18 months, so it is about delivery and it is about urgency. We have several key proposals to see through across the clean and digital transition. The list is very long so I will highlight just a few of them. On the clean energy side, the Commission will table a new energy package in July. It will include a target to boost electrification in Europe and the modernisation of our Emission Trading System, the ETS review. As you know, on the digital side we have our Tech Sovereignty package. We need it to strengthen Europe's capacity in tech from chips to AI, from cloud to language models. It's quite a big week. Then we have invest and to grow we must keep working hard on making life easier for business. Our presidency leadership will be essential to deliver our simplification agenda. You know the famous omnibus six: R&D have already reached the finish line, but four now have to come to the finish line during this presidency. And the same goes for Inc. We discuss a single rule book for innovative companies. We should aim for an agreement before the end of this year because entrepreneurs have no time to lose. They are really waiting for this, for Inc. And you have committed to making the Savings and Investment Union a reality. That is very much welcome. We hear over and over again about capital markets – we need to end the fragmentation of the capital market. Then there is a lot of capital that is available for startups, and for that we need the Savings and Investment Union. My second point is on security. Security underpins everything we do. As a matter of fact, many of the technologies that power our economy are also critical to our security. Semiconductors are the perfect example, which is why Ireland's contribution is so important. Security also means taking more responsibility for our own defense. So we welcome your decision to increase defense spending by 55% by 2030. During your presidency we will continue to advance Europe's defense readiness. That spans till 2030. Given the increasingly threatening landscape, our defense readiness is critical to deter adversaries. This includes building up capability through our SAFE program. SAFE, the 150 billion program for joint procurement. So far we have signed in real-time loan agreements with 10 member states, worth 100 billion euros. And this enables the member states to undertake joint defense projects through common procurement. Of course, while stepping up on defense in Europe, we continue to support our friends in Ukraine. Already from the 90 billion Ukraine loan we have disbursed more than 3 billion budget support, and the first part of the 6 billion for air defense. And at the same time we are working with Ukraine to build more structural defense industrial partnerships with Ukraine's defense industry so that we can benefit from their defense industrial innovation and their experience on the battlefield. My third point is on the next long-term budget. In June the Council reached an important agreement on the architecture of the MFF. This is a big step forward. We have now agreed on the architecture – set in stone. Now we have to fill the negotiation box. The next level is the right financing, and we should aim for a revised negotiation box for the October European Council, including a shared understanding on how we want to finance the next MFF. This is central so that the next budget is ready to deliver from the 1st of January 2028. This will, as you said, require a lot of hard work. We know it, and of course we will support you every step of the way. To put the bar even higher, Ireland successfully brokered an MFF agreement in 2013, so we know you can make it. And therefore we count on you. My first point is on housing. Europe is facing a housing crisis, a crisis of affordability, access, and quality. Our citizens are calling for action, and we are responding. Under your presidency, we aim to launch a European Housing Alliance, and we will convene a high-level European Housing Summit. This is one of the defining social challenges of our time, and our people expect us to deliver. My last point is on enlargement. Ukraine and Moldova have opened their first accession cluster. That's a big step forward. Albania continues to progress. I very much welcome your strong support for this – a just, based process. This includes the intention to complete accession negotiations with many till the end of the year. We have every reason to trust Ireland on this because, as you said, after all, the historic 124 enlargement was agreed under the Irish presidency. And Ireland's own story reminds us why enlargement is one of the smartest investments. When Ireland joined the European Community in 1973, the GDP per capita was around half of the European average. Today it is roughly double the European average. So you were catching up and now you are leading the way. That's amazing. And there is hardly a more convincing argument for enlargement than that. So, thank you again. Ireland has always had a talent for turning ambition into achievement. I am confident your presidency will do the same for Europe. Thank you very much.
