The EU and the US have been called on by one Irish MEP to redouble their efforts to resolve a long-running trade dispute, which has resulted in retaliatory tariffs placed on a range on Irish products.
Midlands North West MEP Colm Markey was commenting ahead of Tuesday’s EU-US summit in Brussels, which will be attended by US President Joe Biden.
Both sides agreed in March to suspend all retaliatory tariffs on EU and US exports imposed as part of the Airbus/Boeing row for a four-month period, with the suspension expiring on July 10th.
Commenting, Markey said: “President Biden has promised a new relationship between the US and the EU following four years of protectionism under the Trump administration.
“Talk about a return to multilateralism must be followed up by action and today’s EU-US summit offers the perfect opportunity to set out a plan to bring this near 17-year-old dispute to an end.”
The MEP added that both exporters and importers need certainty, particularly in the context of the Covid-19 recovery.
“Since 2019, a 25% tariff has been placed on Irish good such as liqueurs, whiskey and other agricultural produce.
“With reciprocal tariffs placed on animal feed coming into Ireland, this has affected the beef, pork, and poultry sectors.
“The decision to temporarily suspend the tariffs in March was very much welcome, but now both sides need to go the extra mile and end these tit-for-tat tariffs once and for all.
“Our importers and exporters need some certainty, particularly in the post-COVID era,” Markey concluded.