Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Martin Heydon has disputed a claim from a German MEP that there was an agreement or understanding that Ireland would back the EU-Mercosur Trade Agreement in exchange for the nitrates derogation.

A spokesperson for the minister confirmed that Minister Heydon was aware of comments from Manfred Weber, the president of the European Peoples Party (EPP), which the minister's own party, Fine Gael, is a member of.

Weber is also the leader of the EPP's parliamentary party within the European Parliament.

It is understood that Weber told a recent meeting that Ireland had entered into some form of agreement or understanding that would entail the country voting in favour of the EU-Mercosur Trade Agreement in exchange for the European Commission granting an extension to Ireland's nitrates derogation.

However, Minister Heydon has rejected that claim, with spokesperson for the minister issuing a statement saying: "At no time did Minister Heydon speak about this or mention this in all his negotiations with Commissioner [for the Environment Jessika] Roswall and her team.

"This never came up throughout the entire time and negotiations," the statement added.

"The extension of the nitrates derogation was achieved purely and only on the hard work that farmers have carried out to date through the environmental schemes they volunteered for and also on the agreement reached on the future works that will be carried out on the habitats assessment," the spokesperson said.

The spokesperson pointed to the Agri-Climate Rural Environment Scheme as an example of these actions, saying that the scheme has seen farmers working to "protect over 9,000km of waterways, create 55,000ha of new foraging areas for wild birds, [and] plant 2,300km of new hedgerows and over half a million trees".

Derogation for Mercosur claims

This has not been the first time that Minister Heydon has been forced to address claims of a deal being made to secure Irish support for the trade agreement by extending the derogation.

Speaking earlier this month, he said: "There’s been an awful lot of loose talk around Mercosur, and I don’t want anyone in the farming sector to think that the nitrates derogation is a tradeable commodity, that people throw you a few sweets if you’re good."