EU Involvement
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Abstract:
This document represents a chronological record of efforts to bring the European Union (EU) institutions to bear in a campaign in Ireland to seek Government intervention in repairing damage to homes across Ireland, due to the absence of effective market surveillance of concrete product manufacture, designed to ensure products entering the market place were fit for purpose.
June 2021 (Protest in Dublin):
Circa 20,000 Irish citizens descended on Dublin, Ireland’s capital city, to protest at the lack of Government supports for families living in defective homes. Member of European Parliament (MEP) Luke “Ming” Flanagan approached campaigners Dr Eileen Doherty and Ms Ann Owens and offered support. Campaigners were advised the first step in getting the EU’s attention was to submit Petitions to the EU Parliament.
Eight Petitions were submitted to the EU Parliament in Q3 2021 and can be referenced through this link:
EU Parliament Petitions – Defective Concrete in Ireland
These petitions represent seven personal family accounts of living in defective homes. Petition 0790/2021 was specifically submitted with reference to EU regulation which campaigners alleged Ireland had failed to implement, and through this oversight, had caused the crisis which thousands of Irish families found themselves living every day.
Dec 2021 (Presentation to EU Petitions Committee):
The EU Parliament Petitions Committee invited petitioners to present their case in person to the EU Parliament in Brussels. The Petitions Committee is a gateway to the Parliament for all EU citizens. It offers access to several Committee’s within The Parliament with expertise ranging from Industry, Legal and Finance.
Covid-19 was still an issue in Dec 2021 so only a small number of campaign representatives were permitted to travel. Attendees are listed below:
Ms Mary Regan – (Representing Old Age Pensioners)
Ms Loren Devers – (Representing County Mayo)
Dr Eileen Doherty – (Previous PRO for Mica Action Group)
Ms Ann Owens – (Previous Chair Mica Action Group)
Mr Eamonn Jackson – (Current Chair Mica Action Group)
Mr Joseph Morgan – (EU Campaign Lead)
Ms Ann Ownes began the presentation to the Petitions Committee with an in depth insight into the history of the campaign, and failures at both local & national Government level to intervene and provide effective remediation to impacted families. Mr Joseph Morgan concluded the Petitioners presentation with a focus on where the Irish Government had failed to implement EU Regulation pertaining to the manufacture and use of concrete products.
The EU Petitions Committee presentation can be viewed at the following link:
Defective Concrete Campaign Presentations to EU Petitions Committee
Mar 2022 (EU Petitions Committee Initiate Communication with Irish Government) :
The EU Petitions Committee followed through on Petitioners requests to initiate an investigation with the Irish Government to establish the level, or lack thereof, of implementation and enforcement of EU Regulation pertaining to the manufacture and use of concrete products.
In the Governments response, Appendix 1, Section 2.1 Construction Products Directive (CPD), the Government states:
“Building control authorities/local authorities were the principal enforcement agencies for these Regulations. Building control officers were appointed as authorised officers under these Regulations by their local building control authorities. The Regulations set out the specific powers of an authorised officer. Given the limited resources available, enforcement action relating to the Construction Products Directive was generally carried out on a reactive basis. Typically, market surveillance activity was triggered on foot of acting on information received from complaints, e.g. from the public, public bodies, contractors, designers, customs or other market surveillance authorities etc.”
This in noteworthy as Building Control measures are generally constraint to the construction project itself and are primarily concerned with building practise, inclusive of quality of workmanship and adherence to planning permission. Market Surveillance, however, is primarily concerned with processes designed to avoid products entering the market place, i.e getting to site, which are not fit for purpose. The Government goes on to admit Market Surveillance was confined to a reactive response to complaints. This will be extremely important as the EU Campaign pivots towards seeking an EU Commission intervention. This will be covered later in the document.
May 2023 (Campaign Delegation Visit EU Commission) :
Extensive campaigning within the EU Parliament by MEP Luke “Ming” Flanagan and his team continued throughout the period between Dec 2021 and May 2023. The objective was twofold. First, to escalate the issue from within the EU Parliament and second to get the issue in front of the EU Commission.
The EU Commission holds the legal powers to infringe an EU member state where they deem they have failed to implement EU Regulation appropriately. Whilst the EU Parliament can offer significant supports in highlighting injustices against citizens, it does not have the power to legally hold member states to account. Engagement with the EU Parliament was always designed to ultimately, bring the issue to the attention of the EU Commission.
In May 2023 a campaign delegation was invited to meet senior civil servants within The EU Commission. This invite was triggered by the publication of a scientific research paper led by Professor Paul Dunlop (Ulster University) and Dr Andreas Leeman (Group Leader Concrete Technology, Emba) and can be found at this link:
The “mica” crisis in Donegal – A case of internal Sulphate attack
Attendees at the first EU Commission meeting are provided below:
Professor Paul Dunlop – (Ulster University)
Dr Andreas Leeman – (Group Leader Concrete Technology, Emba)
Dr Eileen Doherty – (Previous PRO for Mica Action Group)
Ms Lisa Hone – (Current Chair Mica Action Group)
Mr Joseph Morgan – (EU Campaign Lead)
Video of Attendees at The EU Commission
Whilst the first meeting with the EU Commission did not lead to a commitment to engage, They were clear on parameters which would prompt Their involvement. These were twofold:
- Provide evidence that the crisis was not regional, i.e. confined to North West Ireland
- Provide evidence that the lack of Market Surveillance was continuing to current day
These two requests from the EU Commission were to be the focus of the EU thread of the defective concrete campaign thus forward.
Nov 2023 (EU Parliament Delegation Visit Donegal) :
Following extensive campaigning within the EU Parliament, by both MEP Luke “Ming” Flanagan, his team and campaigners, The Petitions Committee agreed to a “Mission” to Ireland to see the devastation for themselves. A “Mission” is a term coined by the EU Petitions Committee, and represents the highest level of escalation available to the committee, should they deem the scenario put before them represents a significant failure at EU member state Government level to implement and enforce EU Regulations.
The Mission was led by Ms Dolores Monserat, Chairperson on the EU Petitions Committee. She was joined by a number of Irish MEP’s.
The Mission was structured as below:
Petitioners Presentations
Impacted family members who had submitted Petitions to the EU Parliament back in Q3 2021 were invited to speak with the EU Delegation and focused primarily on the experience of living in homes constructed with defective concrete. Attendees were:
Ms Valerie Smyth
Ms Catherine Duffy
Ms Elaine Morgan
Mr Chris Duddy
Ms Maria Crossan
Mr Ali Farren
Ms Michelle Patton
Mr Joseph Morgan
Lobby Group Presentations:
The EU Delegation met with leading members of Defective Concrete Lobby groups who have been engaged with the Irish Government to establish a workable resolution by impacted families. Attendees included:
Ms Lisa Hone – (Chair Mica Action Group)
Ms Martina Hegarty – (North Mayo Pyrite Group)
Dr Martina Cleary – (Chair Clare Pyrite Action Group)
Commercial & Residential Home Visits:
The EU Delegation visited a Community Childcare facility in Letterkenny. This non-profit organisation was facing the daunting prospect of having to exit their premises due to the presence of defective concrete. Their future was not guaranteed.
The EU Delegation travelled to Inishowen, a peninsula in County Donegal, widely accepted as the epicentre of the crisis in Ireland. There, they met campaigner and founder of Redress Focus Groups, Roisin Gallagher, who hosted the delegation in Her home and explained the chronic lack of community supports for impacted families.
Local Authority Meeting:
The EU Delegation met with representatives of Donegal County Council (DCC).
Engineering/Scientific/Government Failures:
The EU Delegation met with engineering and scientific representatives and heard accounts of the failure to learn from previous construction crisis’ in Ireland. Attendees were:
Professor Paul Dunlop – (Ulster University)
Dr Eileen Doherty – (Previous PRO for Mica Action Group)
Mr Charlie Byrne – (IS465 Chartered Engineer)
National Government Meeting:
The EU Delegation met with members of The Department of Housing, Local Government & Heritage, and the Head of The National Building Control Office, Ms Mairead Phelan.
Feb 2024 (Publication of EU Parliament “Mission” Report):
Following the EU Parliament Delegation visit to Donegal, the Petitions Committee published their findings in March 2024. Whilst this document was not legally binding, it represented an independent and objective account of the issue in Ireland, and was forwarded to the EU Commission for consideration.
In parallel to the publication of this report, Mr Joseph Morgan, submitted a compliant direct to The EU Commission reiterating the absence of regulation of concrete products in Ireland. This compliant was preceded by an equivalent complaint submitted to the EU Commission by Coleman Legal in the later half of 2023. Coleman Legal are a Dublin based Legal firm involved in an action against the Irish State in support of families impacted by defective concrete.
Presentation of EU Compliant at EU Parliament Report Adoption Committee Meeting
Attendees:
Mr Christopher Duddy – (EU Parliament Petitionner)
Mr Joseph Morgan – (EU Campaign Lead)
June 2024 (PetroLab Irish Independent Publication):
In June 2024 PetroLab published a summary of their findings, following years of involvement in testing properties in Ireland impacted by defective block. Of particular interest to EU Campaign lead, Mr Joseph Morgan, was the fact that their article confirmed the defective block crisis was national. Critically it also confirmed recency;
“In one case the home affected “was described as a ‘new build’”
Effectively this article had answered the two questions put to the campaign delegation who met with members of the EU Commission back in May 2023. A later conversation between Mr Joseph Morgan and Professor Paul Dunlop revealed there was a scientific publication, reviewed at the International Conference on Iron Sulfide Reactions held in Canada in May 2024, which verified both the national and recency of the defective concrete crisis in Ireland. Mr Morgan shared these artifacts with members of the EU Commission with an interest in developments.
Defective Concrete Issue Confirmed National
July 2024 (EU Commission Infringement Of Ireland for Failure to Implement EU Regulation pertaining to the manufacture and use of concrete products):
In July 20024 The EU Commission confirmed its intention to inject itself into the defective concrete crisis in Ireland. It issued formal infringement procedures against Ireland for failure to implement Market Surveillance of concrete products entering the Irish market place. In their formal notice to Ireland, the Commission stated:
“According to the Commission’s findings, the Irish authorities limited their monitoring activities to finished buildings or finalised civil engineering projects.”
In the Mar 2022 section above, where the Irish Government responded to an enquiry from the EU Parliament Petitions Committee, you can see a clear alignment to The Irish Governments statement and the EU Commissions rationale for infringement.
The EU Commission process is confidential from this point forward until discussions with the Irish Government have concluded and decisions have been agreed. At time of writing we are hopeful for direct action that will mean this crisis will cease and future generations do not find themselves living in defective homes.
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Letter to the Petitions Chair
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Cohen et al 2024 ICISR
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Highlighting our crisis to the eu
https://redressfocusgroups.ie/about/highlighting-our-crisis-to-the-eu/