Michael McGrath, Ireland’s commissioner pick, has been appointed Commissioner-designate for Democracy, Justice and the Rule of Law. McGrath is a member of the Irish Fianna Fáil party, belonging to the Renew Europe group in the European Parliament, and a former Minister for Finance.
McGrath, born in Cork in 1976, studied commerce at University College Cork and later qualified as a chartered accountant with KPMG. He has been a member of the Oireachtas (lower house of the Irish Parliament) for the Cork South-Central constituency since 2007. Most recently, he held the positions of Minister for Finance (2022-2024) and Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform (2020-2022).
On receiving the justice and law portfolio Ireland’s Taoiseach, Simon Harris shared:
“This is a strong and influential appointment for Ireland’s Commissioner-designate, Michael McGrath. I have worked closely with President Ursula von der Leyen in recent weeks and today’s announcement is a vote of confidence in Ireland’s candidate.”
Democracy
Michael McGrath will play a key role in protecting the EU’s democracy, by leading work on a new European Democracy Shield and building on both the European Democracy Action Plan and Defence of Democracy package. He will work with other members of the college to step up the fight against foreign information manipulation and interference and coordinate the work on disinformation while also preserving the fairness and integrity of elections. McGrath has also been tasked with protecting the safety of political candidates and elected representatives.
Rule of Law
One of McGrath’s main priorities will be leading the work on consolidating the Rule of Law Paper by reporting on the four pillars related to judicial independence, anti-corruption, media freedom, and other institutional checks and balances. He will add a Single Market dimension to the Rule of Law Report and work closely with the Commissioner for Budget, Anti-Fraud, and Public Administration on developing a clear EU approach to anti-corruption. McGrath will be expected to promote a rule of law culture among European citizens, authorities, and all stakeholders.
Justice
McGrath’s main task will be to contribute to EU competitiveness. He plans to prepare a specific proposal on an EU-wide company legal status – a 28th regime – to help innovative companies grow. In his written answers, McGrath highlighted that this will “offer companies a choice to carry out their activities across the Single Market through an EU-wide legal status instead of having to adopt national legal forms in Member States where they would like to do business.”
He will develop and present the next Consumer Agenda 2025-2030 while also proposing a new Action Plan for consumers in the Single Market. Additionally, McGrath is tasked with developing a Digital Fairness Act to tackle online issues and work closely with Europol and Eurojust to strengthen the European Arrest Warrant.
To conclude, Michael McGrath’s appointment as Commissioner-Designate for Democracy, Justice, and the Rule of Law will ensure greater protection against disinformation, corruption, and strengthen market competitiveness. Tasked with safeguarding democratic integrity and enhancing the rule of law, McGrath’s leadership in this role is set to strengthen EU governance.
