Joe Costello (Dublin Central, Labour)
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Deputy Deasy has certainly described the trip very well. I visited Vietnam as Minister of State with responsibility for trade and development in 2013. It is the only country outside Africa that is a partner country for Irish Aid. After the Vietnam war - or the war with America, as it is called there - Ireland was very quick to provide assistance and a presence on the ground to help in dealing with a de-mining programme and decommissioning weapons. Mines still regularly kill many people in Vietnam. We also deal with minorities. Another benefit of the Irish Aid activity is that approximately 24 Vietnamese people come each year to Ireland to study in the Smurfit business school and do a masters in business administration. Others come within other categories, and there is a very strong business link with what Irish Aid has done in lifting the country and providing some of the brightest in Vietnam with good quality business education in Ireland.

To some extent, this goes back to the first Irish semi-State body that invested in Vietnam, which was ESB International. That was under the leadership of Mr. Paddy Moriarty, brother of broadcaster Mícheál Ó Muircheartaigh, but unfortunately Paddy is now deceased. He was the first to bring Vietnamese students to Ireland and he even brought them to his own home in Kerry. One of those bright students he brought to Ireland is now the Deputy Prime Minister of Vietnam. He regards himself as the Irish man in the cabinet. We have a very strong link with Vietnam at the highest level at which we can do business. ESB International, as an Irish company, is still very much involved with Vietnam.

We have much to go on and our relationship is very strong. Irish Aid has been strong for a while and last year we finalised an adoption agreement with Vietnam as well. Its Minister for justice came here and our Minister went over there. That agreement has worked out satisfactorily. As Deputy Deasy stated, with the lifting of the milk quota there is an obvious area for Irish business to engage. There has always been engagement with New Zealand or Holland and not this corner of the world because quotas have been in operation for 30 years. I fully agree with Bord Bia and the Kerry Group being involved in that respect.

There should be a full-scale trade mission going from Ireland to Vietnam. Deputy Deasy's comments are correct and there seems to be a perception of putting so many eggs in the China basket, which has taken much attention and time, along with numerous ministerial visits and trade missions. That is desirable but there are 93 million people in Vietnam, which is growing at a fast rate in Asia, and that presents many opportunities. There is an incredibly good relationship between the countries, so the opportunities exist. We should certainly expand on them.