Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The Minister, Deputy McConalogue, and the Minister of State, Senator Hackett, are looking at that and whether amendments can be brought forward to facilitate that on farmland as well. I am very impatient and intolerant of this whole area because Ireland is a place where we can and should be growing far more trees than we are growing. Doing so creates a carbon sink, ultimately. It is probably the ultimate guarantor we have in terms of emissions and getting Ireland's contribution to climate change right. I take the overall point that the mandate of Coillte has to be a very clear one. In addition to its work on the commercial side, it has a strong mandate and it must now be part of the solution to climate change by addressing that issue through land use strategies and through the forestry sector. That is something we are very committed to.

Deputy McDonald raised the Mercosur agreement. I have articulated at European Council level Ireland's position on Mercosur because of the continuing deforestation of the Amazon region by the Brazilian Government. I have made that clear. As the Deputy knows, the European Union conducts trade negotiations on behalf of the European Union. Individual states do not. I am intrigued by the Deputy's constant invocation of Mercosur. I understand why she is doing that. For me, it is not compatible with climate change. Of late, the Commission and the European Council are saying that trade agreements more generally have to be in line with the climate change objectives of the European Union. One of the biggest issues on the agenda of the European Union is climate change and that will manifest itself in the Fit for 55 package. There will be a lot of negotiations around that. Challenging issues will arise out of this in the fullness of time but we have made very clear, and I have made it consistently clear at EU Council meetings, our position on Mercosur. Other countries want Mercosur to happen. I believe generally in trade. That is why I supported the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement, CETA, that is, the Canadian treaty, which Deputy McDonald opposed. She continues to oppose it, as do other Deputies in the House. Yet, CETA has led to a massive increase in the growth of exports from Ireland, from small to medium-sized Irish companies to the Canadian market. I do not know why people are against it or why people oppose-----

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