The purpose of the study commissioned by my Department is to examine the economic and other impacts of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) and related potential opportunities for Ireland. The focus of this study is to identify key areas and sectors of the economy that will be impacted by TTIP. This will help to inform our input to the European Union’s negotiating position. It will also help in identifying appropriate policy responses to be deployed to maximise the potential of this historic agreement and provide an assessment of the longer term implications for enterprise policy.
The Conference on TTIP that I hosted in Dublin Castle on 20 June, to which Oireachtas members from relevant Joint Committees were invited, heard some preliminary findings from Copenhagen Economics that indicate a comprehensive trade and investment deal between the EU and the US could lead to a 1.1% increase in Irish GDP. Other preliminary findings included benefits for Ireland including increased exports (2.7%) real wages (1.4%) and investment (1.6%).
The study is still underway, and while I have no plans to publish at this stage, I will make headline findings widely available.
