The Irish government has cleared the way for the ratification of an EU trade deal struck with Canada nine years ago.
Tánaiste Simon Harris said there was Cabinet approval for changes to be made to the Arbitration Act which would “pave the way for the ratification of CETA (EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic Trade Agreement).”
The EU and Canada deal has been provisionally applied since 2017, meaning a lot of the trade benefits promised by the EU have already taken effect even though the deal has not yet been ratified by Ireland and a number of other European countries.
“This has allowed Irish companies to take advantage of the beneficial terms of the Agreement and the new market opportunities it has provided”, the Irish government says.
At the time, the Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers Association (ICSA) objected to the EU-Canada agreement, fearing “beef will be the big losers”.
“In 2024, Ireland’s goods exports to Canada stood at €4.1 billion, more than a fourfold increase (436%) on the pre-CETA export levels of €0.9 billion in 2016”, the Department of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.
Speaking after the Cabinet agreement, the Tánaiste said:
“CETA is an important part of Ireland’s diversification story, particularly post-Brexit and against the volatility of US tariffs and the uncertainty in the global trading environment.”
The ratification of CETA was promised in the coalition’s Programme for Government.
Simon Harris insists that the deal is “good for Canada, good for the EU and good for Ireland.”
The government said the amendment to the Arbitration Act, which was passed in 2010, will clear the way for the ratification of CETA, but also other EU free trade agreements including provisions in EU deals with Singapore, Vietnam, Chile and Mexico.