Mercosur motion passes in spite of Government opposition

A motion centred on the EU-Mercosur Agreement has passed in the Dáil earlier today, Thursday, July 11, despite the Government voting against it.

The motion, tabled by Sinn Féin, called on the Dáil to note that the Mercosur agreement “is a bad deal for Ireland and the planet”, and mandated the Government to build a coalition across the EU to ensure that the deal is rejected and ensure Ireland’s interests are put to the fore in all engagements on the matter.

In the motion, all parties other than Fine Gael and the independents supporting the Government voted in favour of the motion, according to a Sinn Féin spokesperson.

An amendment, tabled by the Government, was defeated. The motion was tabled in the Dáil yesterday; it was subsequently voted on this afternoon.

During the Dáil debate, Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation, Heather Humphreys, confirmed that the EU Mercosur deal is a “mixed” agreement, requiring the involvement of Dáil Eireann in its ratification process.

It was confirmed earlier in the week that Fianna Fáil had committed to vote in favour of the motion.

The agreement, announced by the European Commission in recent weeks, has received a strong farmer backlash in recent days.