European Commission appoints Barbara Nolan as new Head of its Representation in Ireland

In this function, Ms Nolan will act as the official representative of the European Commission in Ireland under the political authority of President Ursula von der Leyen. She will take up her office on 16 May 2021.

Ms Nolan, an Irish national, has over 30 years of career in the European Commission, during which she has acquired substantial experience in a broad variety of EU policy areas. She is particularly experienced in a range of areas that are essential for the daily work of a Head of Representation such as performing management functions, undertaking representation tasks and leading negotiation efforts. Furthermore, the field of communication also played a central part in her career given her former role as Commission Spokesperson for Employment, Social Affairs and Justice and Home Affairs and as Head of the Communication Unit at the Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion (EMPL).

This is Ms Nolan’s second appointment as Head of Representation in Ireland - she previously served in this position from 2010-16 and was the first woman to do so.

Ms Nolan is currently the Head of Unit in the Directorate-General for Justice (JUST), responsible for Fundamental Rights Policy. In this position, she has played an important role in championing key European values, in particular the respect, promotion and protection of fundamental rights as enshrined in the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights. At earlier stages of her career, she held a number of other management positions including at the Directorate for Education, Youth, Sport and Culture (EAC) and DG EMPL. At the former, she focused on the coordination of Erasmus+ programme and higher education reform initiatives, at the latter she worked on Antidiscrimination policy and relations with Civil Society Organisations.

Ms Nolan is from Dublin and is a graduate of University College Dublin and the College of Europe, Bruges, Belgium.