The Deputy is speaking from the Opposition. He knows how this works.

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The Deputy can make his remarks but he does not have to-----

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The Deputy knows-----

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I move amendment No. 1: To delete all words after "Dáil Éireann" and substitute the following: "notes the vote of the European Union (EU) member states on 9th January, which accepted by a qualified majority the EU-Mercosur Trade Agreement; and recognises that: — every effort was undertaken by the Government to work with like-minded EU member states who shared concerns with the Mercosur agreement to stand up for Irish farmers and defend our interests in opposing the Mercosur Trade Agreement; and — Government Ministers, including the Taoiseach, Tánaiste, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, and the Minister of State for European Affairs and Defence have worked extensively with fellow EU ministers to make changes to the Mercosur Trade Agreement, but the improvements made unfortunately were not acceptable to the Government; further recognises that: — following the initial Mercosur Trade Agreement, which was agreed in 2019, the then Government and other EU governments expressed strong objections to the agreement, and required the EU and Mercosur to return to the negotiation table; — in 2024, the EU and Mercosur agreed an additional legal instrument on trade and sustainability commitments; — in October 2025, the European Commission (EC) responded to the demands of Ireland and other concerned member states by presenting a number of flanking measures to address the concerns of the agriculture sector; — these additional measures included: — a 'safeguards' measure to protect against a surge in import volumes, or price falls in the EU; — a financial safety net for farmers; — strengthened sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) controls along with a 50 per cent increase in audits and checks; and — commitments on the alignment of production and SPS standards, notably on pesticides and animal welfare; — the EC has also proposed additional flexibility in the EU budget and to enhance the availability of Common Agricultural Policy funding for farmers and rural communities; and notes that while the additional commitments are welcome, on balance, the Government considered they are not sufficient to satisfy the concerns of Irish farmers and citizens; and welcomes, in line with the firm commitment in the Programme for Government that the Government voted against the adoption of the EU-Mercosur Trade Agreement." I want to be absolutely clear. The Government rejects entirely the arguments and positions put forward in the Sinn Féin motion before the Dáil and, indeed, the contributions from the Sinn Féin Deputies heretofore. The motion does not reflect the reality of what the Government has done, nor does it acknowledge the sustained, serious and good-faith efforts undertaken by Government Ministers, officials and diplomats at the European Union level, and with like-minded EU member states, to oppose the EU-Mercosur agreement and to defend the interests of Irish farmers and rural communities. I am utterly aghast at some of the revisionism coming from Deputies so far. The Government countermotion replaces assertion with fact. It sets out clearly the actions taken by the Government, the evolution in the agreement in terms of trade and sustainability commitments, the significant concessions obtained from the European Union to address the concerns of the agricultural sector and the basis on which Ireland reached its decision. It is that position I wish to place fully and clearly on the record of Dáil Éireann this evening. On 9 January, EU member states voted on the signature of the EU-Mercosur trade agreement. That vote was carried by a qualified majority. Ireland voted against the adoption of the agreement. That vote was entirely consistent with the programme for Government and with the position articulated by this Government repeatedly and unambiguously over a sustained period. It is important to emphasise that this decision was not a symbolic gesture. Ireland's opposition to the EU-Mercosur agreement has been consistent and focused on ensuring the best outcome for our most vulnerable sectors, both in our efforts to achieve a blocking minority and in our work to seek out supports and protections for our farmers in the event the agreement would ultimately be adopted. Crucially, Ireland did not stand alone and shout from the sidelines. The Sinn Féin Deputy who criticised Government and Opposition Members' absence is himself absent having made that assertion. One has to worry about when to take people seriously in this Chamber. Every effort was undertaken by the Government to work with like-minded member states which shared our concerns about the agreement. Who else voted against this? France, Austria, Poland and Hungary. The Belgians abstained. Our objective throughout was to stand up for Irish farmers, to protect the rural economy and to ensure that Ireland's voice was heard clearly and credibly at EU level. Government Ministers engaged extensively with EU counterparts. That engagement was sustained over time and took place across multiple forums: European Council meetings, sectoral Council meetings, bilateral engagements and direct dialogue with the European Commission, including during a focused visit by trade Commissioner, Maroš Šefčovič, in October last year. The purpose of that broad-based engagement was twofold - first, to attempt to build a blocking minority of member states and second, to seek substantive changes and safeguards that would meaningfully address Ireland's concerns. That work was done seriously and persistently. It represents the kind of diplomacy that a small, influential member state must practice if it is to defend its interests effectively within the European Union. That is something this Government and Irish Governments of every fold can look back throughout our membership of the European Union and point to real actual wins over time. That effort matters and it is entirely ignored in the Sinn Féin motion. The lack of real assessment and objective analysis of the work that goes in at EU level sticks in my craw. It is also essential to situate this debate in the wider context of Ireland's approach to trade. Trade is not an abstract concept for this country. It is central to our economic model, to our employment base and to the living standards of our people in urban and in rural communities. Ireland is an open, outward-facing economy. Our prosperity has not been built on natural resources or protectionism but on the talent of our people, on innovation, on high-quality agricultural production and on our ability to compete in global markets. Deputy Farrell was right when she said that Irish beef is world-known. It is known because of the consistent effort to go on trade missions to get access to markets such as the reopening of the Chinese market to Irish beef this week. Our membership of the European Union is fundamental to that success. It amplifies our influence and allows us to shape trade agreements that reflect EU values and standards. Through the EU, Ireland has benefited from a network of free trade agreements that have opened markets, supported exports and reinforced high standards in areas such as food safety, animal and plant health, environmental protection, labour rights and sustainability. For a country that exports approximately 90% of the food and drink we produce, trade is indispensable. Deputy Carthy gave the game away. Sinn Féin has opposed every single EU trade deal and has voted and campaigned against every single European treaty since the referendum in 1972 on Ireland joining the then EEC. Sinn Féin is a Eurosceptic party. It always has been. It got a bit woolly on it during the Brexit years when it thought it might be able to back it but its true colours are showing and it is trying to catch up with people who have been criticising it for its lack of consistency on the European front. However, openness is very clear; it has never meant naivety. The Government has always been clear that trade policy must be balanced. Supporting open, rules-based trade does not mean supporting every trade agreement in any form, regardless of its distributional impact or its consequences for vulnerable sectors. The Irish Government has consistently shown this. We have backed the trade deals that have been beneficial to Ireland and we have worked on trade deals to improve them and make them even more beneficial to crucial sectors. That balance between opportunity and protection and between competitiveness and sustainability has been at the heart of the Government's approach to the EU-Mercosur agreement. Ireland's concerns about the EU-Mercosur agreement are long-standing and well documented. Following the initial political agreement reached in 2019, the then Government, alongside other EU governments, expressed strong objections and insisted that the EU and Mercosur return to the negotiating table. Those objections were grounded in substance, not ideology. They reflected concerns about the impact on sensitive agricultural sectors, about the enforceability of sustainability commitments and about the fairness of exposing EU farmers to increased competition from producers operating under different regulatory and environmental regimes. As a result of sustained pressure from Ireland and others, further negotiations took place. In December 2024, the EU and Mercosur agreed an additional legal instrument on trade and sustainability commitments. That represented progress but the Government was clear that progress alone would not be enough. What mattered was whether the final package, taken as a whole, adequately addressed Ireland's core concerns, particularly those of Irish farmers and rural communities. In October 2025, following continued advocacy by Ireland and other concerned member states, the European Commission presented a set of flanking measures aimed at addressing agricultural concerns. These measures were not incidental. They were the direct consequence of member states insisting that agriculture could not simply be treated as collateral damage in a broader trade deal. Those measures included a safeguard mechanism to protect against surges in import volumes or significant price falls in the EU market; an enhanced financial safety net for farmers; strengthened sanitary and phytosanitary, SPS, controls, including a commitment to increase audits and checks by 50%; and commitments on the alignment of production and SPS standards, particularly in relation to pesticides and animal welfare. The Commission also proposed additional flexibility within the EU budget and enhanced availability of Common Agricultural Policy funding for farmers and rural communities in the context of the next multi-annual financial framework. Ireland has been absolutely clear that CAP must remain a central pillar of the European Union and must be adequately resourced to reflect the cumulative pressures facing farmers, from market volatility to climate obligations to regulatory change. The Government welcomes these additional commitments and acknowledges that they represent a genuine response to concerns raised by Ireland and others but welcoming progress does not require us to suspend judgment or to ignore remaining risks. On balance, the Government concluded that the package of measures did not sufficiently mitigate the risks to Irish agriculture or to the rural economy but we consistently worked to try to achieve a package of measures. The Sinn Féin motion tonight, in line with its motion in 2019, proposes we would remove ourselves from any negotiations, simply accept what is presented and just put in our vote but that is not how the EU or qualified majority voting works. If the Deputies opposite do not know it, they should know. The conclusion made by the Irish Government was reached following detailed examination, consultation with stakeholders and engagement with like-minded member states. It was not predetermined and it was not ideological. The Sinn Féin motion fails to acknowledge that reality, that governing requires ongoing analysis, engagement with a variety of stakeholders and careful, balanced decision-making. The EU-Mercosur agreement is viewed by many member states and by the Commission as a strategic instrument in a changing and uncertain global trade environment. Ireland understands that context and has engaged with it seriously and responsibly. However, strategic considerations cannot override the lived reality of Irish farming families or the structure of the Irish rural economy. Indeed that message was delivered loud and clear by the large numbers of farmers and farming families who attended the rally in Athlone over the weekend and countless other meetings and engagement with every single member of the Government parties. The Government recognises that agriculture in Ireland is not just an economic sector; it is a social and regional foundation. Irish farmers operate to some of the highest standards in the world, and it is neither fair nor sustainable to expose them to increased competition from imports produced under different conditions without adequate safeguards. That is why, in line with the programme for Government commitment, Ireland voted against the signature of the EU-Mercosur agreement. That vote reflects a consistent, credible and principled position. It supports open and fair trade. It values Ireland's membership of the European Union. It recognises that the agreement will undoubtedly benefit other sectors of the economy but it refuses to accept a deal where the risks to agriculture and rural Ireland have not been adequately addressed.

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