Malcolm Byrne (Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister of State for coming to the House to address the issue of the CETA deal, a very important trade deal between the European Union and Canada, the importance of trade between Ireland and Canada, and to debunk some of the misinformation that has been spread about this deal.

People sometimes have the idea that trade deals are something particularly negative. All the international evidence, including from the OECD, shows that trade deals result in more employment, higher average pay, raised incomes, improved working conditions and reduced prices to consumers. There are individuals who lose out, but it is better to upskill, reskill and help modernise industries rather than retain protectionist policies. The OECD has stated that up to half of employment in Ireland is dependent on trade-driven exports.

My understanding is that trade between Ireland and Canada is now close to €4 billion annually. That has significantly increased since the CETA deal came into place. Canada, like the European Union, has some of the highest labour, employment, public health and environmental standards anywhere in the world. Canada, like the European Union, is also committed to fair trade. I have to ask, if we cannot do a trade deal with Canada, with whom can we do a deal?

I have far more concerns about the deal between the EU and China, where there are questions around its labour standards, but those opposed to CETA do not seem to want to criticise China. In fact, those opposed to CETA seem more convinced that we should be looking at the economic models in Cuba and Venezuela where labour standards are certainly far lower. Internationally, there are currently more than 2,300 bilateral investment treaties.All of those agreements have international arbitration or dispute resolution mechanisms. If a dispute arises, there has to be a way for it to be resolved.

The Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement does not force governments on either side of the Atlantic to change any of our standards. Let us be very clear about this. It is about dispute resolution. If an Irish company is discriminated against by a Canadian provincial or national government, it can take action and, similarly, a Canadian company can do likewise on this side. The European Court of Justice has found that the investment court system of CETA is in line with EU treaties. The court mechanism will not be some sort of hidden system. It will involve public hearings. Documents will be made available, interested parties, including NGOs, will be able to make submissions, and areas like public health and the environment will remain national competencies which cannot be challenged.

I am looking forward to an era where we see blockchain smart contracts, which will make the need for dispute resolution mechanisms largely redundant. Until then, in all of our international trade agreements and treaties there has to be a dispute resolution mechanism. Canada, like the European Union, has very strong standards in all of these areas. We should be supportive of companies in Ireland that continue to trade with Canada and provide good jobs here and vice versa.

I ask the Minister of State to set out the benefits of Irish-Canadian trade and debunk some of the myths we are hearing about CETA. I ask him to make clear to people that the investor court system operates to provide balance and is not the result of some of the scaremongering we have been hearing about it.

Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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I thank Senator Malcolm Byrne for raising this important topic and affording me the opportunity to factually address the House and contradict some of the misinformation that is circulating in relation to CETA. The EU's Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement with Canada is designed to benefit EU and Canadian companies through improved trade flows in support of increased employment for our citizens. The elimination of tariffs, reduced non-tariff barriers and simplified customs procedures that flow from CETA will make it easier and cheaper for Irish companies of all sizes to export to Canada and vice versa.

The agreement covers virtually every aspect of economic activity and provides new market opportunities in many sectors for Irish firms given the extensive bilateral business links between Ireland and Canada. Outside of Europe, the US and China, Canada is our largest indigenous export market. More than 400 Enterprise Ireland clients are doing business in the Canadian market, employing in excess of 6,000 people. Since the agreement was provisionally applied in September 2017, duties on 98% of products the EU trades with Canada have been removed. Furthermore, exports of Irish goods and services to Canada totalled approximately €3.9 billion in 2019. This was a 35% increase compared with 2016, which was the last full year prior to the provisional application of CETA.

CETA is delivering on the ground for our citizens. My Department and our enterprise agencies will continue to promote the benefits of the agreement for Irish-based enterprises. This increased trade along with wider trade performance help underpin the creation of quality, well-paid jobs. The benefits and opportunities will be especially valuable for small and medium enterprises, SMEs, given that trade barriers tend to disproportionately burden smaller firms which have fewer resources to overcome them compared with larger firms. The main benefits for Ireland in this agreement include the opening up of public procurement markets in the Canadian provinces giving Irish firms increased market access; unlimited tariff-free access for most of our important food goods; and a low beef import quota from Canada.

The full coming into force of CETA will see the implementation of the investment chapter of the agreement, including the mechanisms for resolution of disputes between investors and states, should they arise. The EU's new approach to investment protection, the investment court system, ICS, is contained in CETA and replaces the old investor-state settlement system, which has been included in more than 2,000 international investment treaties but is regarded as outdated.The new ICS provides greater transparency provisions, safeguards to prevent forum shopping, provisions for the swift dismissal of frivolous claims, a clear distinction between international law and domestic law, the avoidance of multiple and parallel proceedings in the ICS and national courts and the establishment of a permanent list of arbitrators.

Investment disputes can continue to be litigated before national courts with the ICS as an alternative single consistent mechanism where investors, be they Canadian or European, can seek redress if they so choose. Significantly, CETA introduces a precise and specific standard of fair and equitable treatment of investors and investment for specific limited grounds such as the case of the denial of justice or fundamental breach of due process or through targeted discrimination.

The Senator referred to the opinion of the ECJ in April 2019. The court held that the dispute settlement mechanism in the CETA is compatible with EU law. It complies with the principle of autonomy of EU law, as well as the exclusive jurisdiction of court for the interpretation of EU law and the Charter of Fundamental Rights, in particular the right of access to court and the right to an independent impartial tribunal under the charter.

Malcolm Byrne (Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister of State for his reply and I strongly agree with him. When we have trade deals, there have to be mechanisms for arbitration and dispute resolution. What is proposed in CETA is an updating of those mechanisms, which will make dispute resolution more transparent and more efficient. It is not going to force member state governments to change any laws.

This is a small island nation. We rely heavily, as the Minister of State said, on trade. If Brexit has taught us anything, it is about the importance of being part of the EU, the world's largest trading bloc, and being able to trade. This will be one of the big political differences between those of us who in the political spectrum who are pro-trade, pro-business and anti-protectionism, and those who take a very narrow view of the world.

All trade deals should be subject to scrutiny. The China deal needs to be subject to greater scrutiny because of labour standards. I encourage all of those companies that continue to trade with Canada to recognise the work of Enterprise Ireland and support it as strongly as they can.

Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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From a domestic law perspective, no transfer of judicial power from the Irish courts to the ICS tribunal is provided for in CETA. CETA expressly provides that the agreement is to be interpreted by the ICS tribunal in accordance with the Vienna Convention, along with other rules and principles of international law applicable between the parties. Accordingly, domestic law is to be treated by the tribunal as a question of fact, not law. In that regard, it is bound by the interpretation of the Irish courts. The Government has definitive legal advice from the Attorney General that confirms no constitutional issues arise with CETA.

The Senator is correct that nothing is to be feared by the ratification of this deal. There are many benefits to be reaped from it. The Government is not trying to rush the treaty through. It has been referred to the European affairs committee, which will have the opportunity to extensively examine all the benefits associated with its ratification. At a time this country is coming from the back of Brexit and trying to overcome the challenges of Covid-19, now it has never been more important that we look to embrace international trade and how we can a support our companies trade internationally in order that they can provide good quality jobs for our citizens.

I thank the Senator again for the opportunity to put the facts on the record of the Seanad.