Much of CETA has already been implemented. However, the part of it that we are dealing with today relates to the investment court structures that have been set up as a consequence. Obviously, Ireland is late coming to the table to ratify this agreement and we are discussing it now, but many other countries also have serious concerns in regard to that. We have courts in this country, in Canada and in Europe. There are already more than enough legal structures in place to deal with whatever disputes that might possibly arise as a consequence of international trade and international agreements. Yet, under this Bill, an additional tier is being set up. It is totally irrational to do this in the context of having our own court system. We pass laws in this House. We bring cases to courts. We facilitate services for people to ensure they are protected and the businesses in this country and international businesses coming here are also protected. We are a common law area. We have a lot of things that attract investment, all of which will be undermined by setting up an additional system outside of that. It is totally unnecessary and, in essence, undermines the system all of us worked so hard to ensure works well and is there to protect people's interests. This is the old difficulty we have. It is big business and profit up against the common good. We want to try to ensure, where possible, that both can work together, that the common good is also something which will facilitate and work with business to ensure everyone can grow and multiple and we can make the cake bigger for everyone. That is what we want to do. The difficulty we see so often in these agreements is that the winner-takes-all attitude comes very much to the fore. Some of the major corporations are out to make massive profits and if there is anything that could possibly inhibit their profits, it will be cut down and they will have a platform that allows them to sue a state that wants to protect its own citizens from the worst ravages of the markets. We saw the ravages of the markets with the downfall of the economy less than a decade ago. We know what all of this can mean. The Irish Farmers' Association and others were before the agriculture committee this morning discussing another trade deal, the Mercosur trade agreement. We are discussing the possible negative impact of CETA. A lot of negative impacts could also come down the road with the Mercosur agreement. Deputy Devlin stated that Canada is an advanced economy and we have so much in common with it. In the case of the Mercosur countries, it is an entirely different situation. They do not apply the same standards as we have in the European Union, yet we are expected to import Mercosur products to Europe, particularly beef of a much lower standard than that produced in the European Union. We need to recognise that if we are to be on the world stage, we also have to stand up for ourselves, our citizens and the citizens of Europe when it comes to the protection of rights, including workers' rights, and the protection of food quality, which, in the case of Mercosur, is a serious issue. We also have to ensure we stand up for the right of the citizens of this nation to make their own decisions, have their own sovereignty, make their own laws and have those laws implemented by their own courts. That is what we need to stand for. The difficulty Sinn Féin has with this particular arrangement is that it goes further than we need to go. We do not need an additional court system. We have a court system in place here and we should stand by that. That is why we are totally opposed to the Arbitration (Amendment) Bill.

Sentiment score: 0.07