Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour) | Oireachtas source

As a nation, we are now very discerning when it comes to ensuring a proper dividend is paid to the worker who operates in the field. We are satisfied that the agreement contains protections in that regard.

I will restate the following for the benefit of the committee. In 2014 there was a trade surplus of €1.7 billion in favour of Central America. That shows that the trade terms favour Central America. Ireland is growing its level of trade on a bilateral basis.

On climate change, Ms Cavacece might want to reiterate what the nature of the relationship is with NGOs from an Irish Aid perspective. We are confident that everything we are doing in respect of the agreement corresponds with our foreign affairs policy on inclusive economic growth.

I will come back to Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan on her question on Belize. I am pretty sure Ms Ní Chonchúir has the answer.

On Cuba, I met Dr. Herrera in the past few weeks and we had a very positive discussion on how we could enhance and improve the relationship between Ireland and Cuba across a range of sectors, including medicines, pharmaceuticals and education. Work is ongoing between him and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in that regard. If there are specific areas about which the committee has ideas, I can assure members that the Department operates an open door policy when it comes to areas in which we can enhance co-operation.

When we talk about equivalence, there are very specific measures in the areas of food safety, sanitary and phytosanitary requirements, energy, mining, tourism, science and technology, as well as governance in terms of taxation and small to medium-sized enterprises. We are trying to reduce technical barriers to trade. Sometimes there is a certain connotation surrounding the liberalisation of markets, but we are satisfied that the manner in which the agreement has been negotiated is such that there will be very stringent checks and balances explicit within it. Also, there will be a parliamentary oversight function through the European Parliament. If one also has directly elected Members of the European Parliament overseeing these agreements, it means that when issues arise, they will come to the fore through the European Parliament.