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

The truth is that any free trade agreement offers opportunities for sectors to grow. In the case of Ireland and the United States, there is ample and clear evidence of that. For example, in terms of our growth in software and business services, 60% of that growth has been in the US market. That is a very strong market for us and if there can be better access to that market, we can gain from it. However, to take advantage of any trade agreement we have to put in place the necessary policies. That is why it is important that we do an evaluation of this nature, which models where the potential opportunities lie. We can now set about examining how we can exploit the opportunities in food, medical devices, software and public procurement that will arise, and prepare for areas where there are potential threats. That is the advantage of these models, and Ireland has proven over many years that we are adept at winning in international markets. We are a small, open trading economy. We depend on trade agreements. If we look at the evidence of the Korea Free Trade Agreement where trade between Europe and Korea has trebled as a result of the opening up of that agreement, we can see the benefits that are to be realised.

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