Micheál Martin (Cork South-Central, Fianna Fail)

-----and that is your position. This is a fundamental point that has been raised time and time again. Those opposite say they are against this and against that. They do not believe in an enterprise economy, they do not believe in free trade and they do not really believe in workers' opportunity to develop and grow within their employments under the model we have here. That is a very serious issue in terms of this consistency over eight or nine years.

It is provisionally in operation, Deputy Ó Murchú, but it is not legislated for. We have to ratify it. We do so, given the fact we are a small, open economy whose workers depend on trade. We manufacture so many goods that are meant for export because we could not consume them in a small island like Ireland. What is the Opposition at in the context of its economic and trade policies? With tariffs coming from the US, of course we should embrace a Canadian-European Union trade agreement and economic partnership. Ireland has a strong economic partnership with Canada, and we should not apologise for that. Canada is not going to be perfect. We are not perfect. Canada will have aspects to its policy it has developed over the years that we may not agree with. Overall, however, it has been a benign, friendly country. There are huge Irish roots and heritage there.

There is a disconnect in this house between what puts bread and butter on the tables of Irish people and the Opposition's hang-ups about investor courts and this, that and the other. It is a completely disproportionate, illogical approach that the Opposition takes. Not one of the Deputies from Labour, Aontú or any other party could say that they will support the CETA legislation. I find that extraordinary.

See this speech in context