Opposition has "done the heavy lifting" in opposing the EU-Mercosur trade agreement, according to an Aontú senator.

Senator Sarah O'Reilly said that "from the get-go", politicians in opposition "have stood with Irish farmers and said no to the importation of lower quality beef that would put Irish livelihoods at risk".

"Farmers are paying attention because they know this will hit their pocket and they are smart enough to see that the government are talking out of both sides of their mouth," according to O'Reilly.

Although Ireland voted against the Mercosur agreement in January, the Aontú senator said that it was "opposition representatives who were doing the real work in opposing Mercosur at European level".

Campaigned against

The senator has questioned whether the government and Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Martin Heydon "actively campaigned against the trade agreement, despite repeated public claims of opposition to the deal".

Aontú TD Peadar Tóibín asked the minister recently if he has "spoken to MEPs in advance of votes in the European Parliament relating to the Mercosur trade agreement".

In response to the parliamentary question, Minister Heydon said the government "has been very clear about Ireland’s concerns in relation to the agreement over a number of years".

These concerns relate "particularly as regards its potential impact on the beef sector, the strength of its climate and sustainability commitments, and the food safety and environmental standards enforced by Mercosur countries", Minister Heydon said.

"While improvements have been made to the overall agreement, including through the proposed regulation on safeguards, we continue to have significant concerns relating to the standards under which imports would be produced, and the impact that this agreement could have on European beef markets and farm incomes.

"Ultimately, the government concluded that the recent additional commitments were not sufficient to satisfy the concerns of our farmers and our consumers, and voted against the agreement.

"We will continue to engage with like-minded member states on these issues," the minister said.

'Serious doubts'

Senator Sarah O'Reilly criticised the reply from the minister, saying that it "did not address the question".

Senator O’Reilly said there are "serious doubts about the government’s commitment to opposing Mercosur in the European Parliament".

She has called for the government and the minister to "actively engage with other EU member states to protect Irish farmers".  

"Aontú representatives went to Strasbourg, and they found that MEPs were incredibly open to meeting and to discussing the threat Mercosur posed to EU food safety and quality standards," O'Reilly added.

"If we were able to do it, then the government was definitely capable of it."