27 Beal 2014, 18:17
The Oireachtas Joint Committee on European Union Affairs this afternoon heard of the progress and challenges facing EU negotiators in trade talks with the US.
27 May 2014
Addressing the Committee was Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Richard Bruton TD, who outlined the current state of play in the negotiations, which are being led by the European Commission in close consultation with national government representatives. Negotiations on the Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) began in July 2013 and the fifth round of the talks took place in the US last week.
Chairman of the Committee, Dominic Hannigan TD says: “This afternoon, our Committee hosted a detailed briefing with Minister Bruton on the on-going negotiations between the European Union and the United States. It served as a valuable first step in informing the Committee's consideration of this important issue. We were told that Ireland stands to gain disproportionately from such an agreement because of the existing strong economic ties between Ireland and the US. The Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation has commissioned economic research to assess the impact of the agreement on Ireland in terms of likely increases in jobs and trade.
“The Committee also heard that sensitive trade sectors such as food, would be negotiated in later rounds but would not lead to a dilution of existing EU policy, which for instance bans 'GM' food and growth hormones. On the issue of public procurement, the Committee was told that more open public tendering systems on both sides of the Atlantic could bring significant opportunities for many Irish SMEs. Next week, we will have the opportunity to discuss with experts the opportunities and potential challenges as the negotiations progress.”
Media enquiries to:
Paul Hand,
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Committee Membership
Deputies: Eric Byrne, Seán Crowe, Timmy Dooley, Bernard J. Durkan, John Halligan, Dominic Hannigan (Chair), Seán Kyne, Dara Murphy (Vice-Chair) and Joe O’Reilly
Senators: Colm Burke, Aideen Hayden, Terry Leyden, Catherine Noone and Kathryn Reilly