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A Dáil vote to ratify the EU-Canada trade deal struck three years ago has been deferred until the New Year.
The EU’s Comprehensive Economic Trade Agreement (CETA) with Canada has been operating on a provisional basis since then, but requires the sign-off of all 27 member states before fully entering into force.
Irish ratification was due to be debated and voted on in the Dáil on Tuesday 15 December.
However, some Green Party TDs have expressed opposition to the deal. They are concerned it would allow corporations sue Ireland through an investor court system if certain regulations, such as tougher climate laws, damaged their profits.
Beef quota
For Irish and EU farmers, CETA has not generated the same level of controversy as other trade deals, such as Mercosur.
The EU signed off on a 45,000t beef quota for Canada as part of the negotiations. However, the quota is for hormone-free beef, something that is not widely produced in Canada.
Less than 3% of the quota has been utilised so far this year, with the EU importing 1,031t of Canadian beef between January and September.
In contrast, 17,597t of European beef has been exported to Canada in the same period, of which just shy of 3,000t was Irish beef.
Irish agri-food
From an Irish agri-food perspective, the outcome of the CETA negotiations were "generally satisfactory" according to the Department of Agriculture's Annual Review and Outlook 2020.
"Although increased access to the EU market was granted for Canadian beef, greater access to the Canadian market for EU beef and dairy products (notably cheese) was secured," it said.
To date, 12 EU Member States have ratified CETA, including Austria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Portugal, Spain and Sweden.
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