Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent)
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243. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the position regarding the EU Mercosur deal; if same is being deferred pending the human rights impact assessment being part of the sustainable impact assessment expected in 2018; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [53218/17]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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The European Commission acts as lead negotiator on behalf of the EU Member States in Trade negotiations. The EU follows closely the situation of indigenous peoples' rights in Brazil. There are regular contacts with indigenous peoples' representatives, civil society, and Brazilian authorities.

Indigenous peoples' rights are addressed in the context of the EU-Brazil High Level Dialogue on Human Rights. During his visits to Brazil, the EU Special Representative for Human Rights regularly meets representatives of indigenous peoples. The next dialogue on human rights will take place in Brussels.

The EU implements several projects in support of indigenous peoples in Brazil for a total of EUR 2.5 million. The EU Delegation and Member States Embassies organise regular visits to different regions of Brazil to get first-hand information on the situation of indigenous groups' rights. The last visit to Mato Grosso do Sul was in April 2016.

In the context of the EU's negotiations with Mercosur, the European Commission has launched a sustainability impact assessment which will, inter alia, look at the potential impacts of the EU-Mercosur Free Trade Agreement on human rights, in line with the Commission's Trade for All Communicationand the Guidelines on the analysis of human rights impact in impact assessments of trade-related policy initiatives. Land-related conflicts and indigenous people's rights will feature prominently amongst the human rights analysed. The EU will continue to support the indigenous peoples' rights in Brazil using all the available instruments in its bilateral relations with Brazil, as well as in the context of the EU-Mercosur negotiations for an association agreement.

There are no plans to defer the Trade agreement based on the sustainability impact assessment. Ireland supports the EU efforts in monitoring the situation on human rights. Overall, Ireland remains fully committed to this negotiation, especially in view of the important economic and political gains expected for both sides from a comprehensive, ambitious and balanced EU-Mercosur Association Agreement

Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent)
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244. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation if she has satisfied herself that the EU Mercosur deal adequately addresses climate change; if so, the basis for that satisfaction; the extent to which climate change has been incorporated in each chapter of the EU Mercosur deal; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [53219/17]

Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent)
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245. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the extent to which the precautionary principle enshrined in EU law as a cornerstone of its environmental policy has been incorporated in each chapter of the EU Mercosur deal; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [53220/17]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 244 and 245 together.

The EU is currently negotiating a trade agreement with the four founding members of Mercosur (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay). A further round of high-level talks on the EU-Mercosur FTA took place from 29 November to 8 December 2017. The European Commission acts as lead negotiator on behalf of the EU Member States in Trade negotiations.

An EU-Mercosur FTA would be the EU’s largest trade deal to date, and would be four times the size of the EU-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement, which was recently concluded. An EU-Mercosur trade agreement aims to eliminate trade tariffs between the EU and the Mercosur region. Irish exporters are currently subject to trade tariffs, barriers and restrictions, when exporting to Mercosur, while imports from Mercosur, particularly in agriculture, are currently subject to high tariffs. The proposed FTA should make exports from Ireland more attractive and potentially increase demand for Irish products.

EU law requires all relevant EU policies, including trade policy, to promote sustainable development. Sustainable development has three pillars: economic, environmental and social. The EU Mercosur FTA has a defined section on sustainable development which includes climate change. A Sustainability Impact Assessment being carried out on the EU Mercosur FTA will also have a designated section on climate change as part of its environmental analysis.

The precautionary principle is enshrined in the EU treaties and all EU trade agreements must respect those treaties. The EU ensures that all its trade agreements fully respect the right to regulate on the basis of the precautionary principle. Trade agreements must also uphold existing EU food safety regulations and other 'secondary legislation' which includes the precautionary principle.

Overall, Ireland remains fully committed to this negotiation, especially in view of the important economic and political gains expected for both sides from a comprehensive, ambitious and balanced EU-Mercosur Association Agreement that will be good for a range of Irish exporting companies and jobs. However, we also have to be mindful of the cumulative impact of EU FTAs on specific sectors, such as agriculture, and the challenges which they face if having to respond to competition on multiple fronts in a comparatively short space of time.