Micheál Martin (Cork South-Central, Fianna Fail)

The CETA trade deal was raised by a number of Deputies. I support what Deputy Malcolm Byrne articulated and am opposed to what Deputy Paul Murphy articulated. CETA is in provisional operation as we speak. The figures are interesting for the growth in trade between Ireland and Canada and particularly for Irish exports to Canada, which have gone up something like 460% - I can check it - which is phenomenal. There is also a significant multinational presence of Canadian companies in Ireland and Irish companies are based in Canada. Trade is the bread and butter of the Irish economy. We only put bread and butter on people's tables if we have sufficient trade. We export almost 90% of what we produce so I do not know how Deputy Paul Murphy thinks we can protect the working class and workers if we turn our backs on trade deals. People would lose jobs if we turn our backs-----

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