Monday, June 23, 2014
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Sounds and sights of summer »p17
Winds of colour
Mariola Pacek and her daughter Natalie fly their kites on Dollymount Strand at the second Dublin Kite Fest yesterday at North Bull Island in Clontarf. More than 14,000 people from around the country turned out for the festival Picture: jason clarke
Enda: I won’t be EC chief JEAN-ClAudE Juncker will be the next president of the European Commission, Taoiseach Enda Kenny has said – seemingly putting himself firmly out of the running. Speaking to Gay Byrne on RTÉ last night, Mr Kenny said: ‘I don’t see any circumstance in which Jean-Claude Juncker will not become the president of the commission.’ He added: ‘I’ve a job to do here and I’m happy and privileged to do that job as Taoiseach.’ The choice of the former luxembourg prime minister is a controversial one, with British prime minister david Cameron strongly opposed to him. However, he is the preferred candidate of the European People’s Party, the largest party in the European parliament, to which Fine Gael is aligned. Nine leaders, including French president Francois Hollande and Italy’s Matteo Renzi, have declared their support for Mr Juncker, while Angela Merkel and her centre-left coalition partner have also cut a deal over Juncker: Preferred
Keep Dublin tidy – Please recycle this Metro Herald when you are finished with it
by angharad wIllIaMs Juncker’s appointment. Mr Cameron is understood to have been in favour of Mr Kenny as a compromise candidate. Today, Mr Cameron and deputy prime minister Nick Clegg will meet with European Council president Herman van Rompuy to spell out their concerns and open a debate about alternative candidates. Mr Cameron will risk deepening divisions between the uK and Eu by forcing leaders from across the 28-member bloc to vote on the issue at the European Council summit this week unless his counterparts are prepared to consider an alternative candidate. He is arguing that the Commission’s head should be chosen by national leaders rather than the European Parliament, which is backing Mr Juncker. Warning he will make it more difficult for renegotiation of Britain’s relationship with Brussels before a referendum in 2017, Mr Cameron said Mr Juncker could increase the likelihood of Britain leavConcerns: Cameron ing the Eu.