Dara Murphy TD, Minister of State for European Affairs, joined pupils from Gardiner Street National School at the Mansion House in Dublin today for a ‘Handshake for Europe’ to mark Europe Day, which falls tomorrow, 9th May.
The pupils were representing the more than 10,000 students from 170 schools across Ireland that are participating in the Blue Star Programme and marking Europe Day with their own events. Now in its fourth year, the Blue Star Programme aims to encourage greater understanding and awareness of Europe and the European Union at primary level.
Speaking at the Blue Star event, Minister Murphy said:
“I’m delighted to mark Europe Day in this way with our Blue Star schools. The ‘Handshake for Europe’, initiated by Irish primary schools, is a great way to celebrate the diversity and inclusiveness of the Blue Star Programme, which is at the very heart of European integration. The Gardiner Street School is an excellent example of this, with over 20 nationalities represented in the school.”
Celebrations to mark Europe Day continued with a ‘Taste of Europe’ public event hosted by the European Commission Representation and the European Parliament Office in Dublin, with the participation of representatives from the embassies of EU Member States. The European Year of Development 2015 was a central theme of the event.
Speaking at the ‘Taste of Europe’ event, Minister Murphy said:
“The European Year of Development is an important opportunity for us to reflect on our place in the world, and how we contribute to ensuring that the world is a fairer and more sustainable place for us all to live. I hope that by the end of 2015, world leaders will have made the brave decisions necessary to move humanity towards a world without poverty and hunger, and which halts and reverses the devastating effects of climate change.”
Note to Editors
1. Europe Day, celebrated on 9 May each year, is the anniversary of the Schuman Declaration, which led to the foundation of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), the forerunner to the European Union.
2. The Blue Star Programme is a joint venture of the Communicating Europe Initiative, supported by the Office of the Minister of State for European Affairs in the Department of the Taoiseach, the European Commission Representation in Ireland and the European Parliament Information Office in Ireland. The national co-ordinating body for the programme is European Movement Ireland.
3. Minister Murphy is pictured with Noelle O’Connell, Executive Director of European Movement Ireland, Cllr Dermot Lacey (Dublin City Council), and the pupils from Gardiner Street National School, Dublin.