Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Investment is good for countries, but it will only come if there is a reasonable level of protection. That is why these things have been there. Investors must be protected from arbitrary actions by Governments or other bodies such as courts. That is why investment protection is part of these agreements. Ireland has not needed it because it has a strong Constitution that provides that to people, and we have not had experience of huge exploitation or abuses by foreign enterprise investing in Ireland. These mechanisms are designed to ensure that rules are applied in a fair manner. That is their purpose, but to take the Deputy's point, the Department has commissioned work that will provide a sector-by-sector indication of opportunities and threats for Ireland, which will be published in the near future. I hope this will add to the debate. Moreover, of course there are concerns. As the Deputy is aware, there are concerns about beef coming into Ireland, but there also are hopes in respect of cheese going to the United States. Any such trade negotiation is a two-way process and, ultimately, the Government must balance them out. That is always an element of negotiation.

See this speech in context