Evanne Ní Chuilinn (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I dtús baire, I echo the remarks of Senators Andrews and Daly on the passing of the great Mick O'Dwyer. I send my condolences the O'Dwyer family and his wider family in the Gaelic games community. Laoch ár linne a bhí ann. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam.

Táimid an-bhuíoch den Aire Stáit as a bheith sa Teach inniu agus bhíomar buíoch den Tánaiste a bhí sa Teach níos luaithe freisin chun deis a thabhairt dúinn cúrsaí trádála a phlé. In his speech President Trump said that US pharma companies will come roaring back. The Tánaiste mentioned the many people going to work this morning with a sense of unease and he is right. While the pharma companies here have "escaped" the tariffs so far, this morning I spoke to someone who works in a pharma company in Kimmage in Dublin. It is not relief that they are feeling this morning but just a sense of trepidation about what might be coming their way at a later date.

I know it is very early days and we all appreciate the call for continued calm by the Tánaiste in the last 12 hours. Does the Minister of State or his Department have a read of what might be coming down the tracks for pharma companies, big and small, that produce finished products and full products here in Ireland? I was encouraged to hear in the Tánaiste's remarks that Ireland and the EU will work together to mitigate the effects of what might be to come. Could the pharma industry here be looking at non-tariff barriers such as taxes or regulations?