A 30 per cent tariff on trade with the United States would have “significant” consequences for the Irish economy, including job losses, Ministers are set to be warned on Tuesday, reports Breaking News.
Tánaiste Simon Harris, who also serves as Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, will deliver the warning at a Cabinet meeting as the European Union seeks to prevent a full-scale trade conflict with the US.
Over the weekend, US President Donald Trump disrupted ongoing negotiations by insisting on a deal by August 1st or else imposing a 30 per cent tariff on EU goods entering the US, reports Breaking News.
Such a development would make it “almost impossible to continue” existing transatlantic trade, which is valued at €4.4 billion per day, according to EU trade commissioner Maros Sefcovic.
At the Cabinet meeting on Tuesday, Mr Harris is expected to tell fellow Ministers that Ireland will focus over the next two-and-a-half weeks on diplomatic efforts to secure an agreement that avoids steep tariffs and averts a wider EU-US trade war, reports Breaking News.
He is set to warn colleagues that such a scenario would have a major impact on Ireland’s economy, with severe job losses expected.
Mr Harris will also caution that if negotiations break down, the EU could respond with its own €72 billion counter-tariff package against the US, which would “cause pain on both sides”, reports Breaking News.
He will say the coming weeks must be used to reach a negotiated solution and avoid such a damaging outcome.
The Tánaiste is also due to brief Ministers on efforts to consult with the pharmaceutical industry in the coming days.
Speaking on Monday night, Mr Harris said the priority should be to “de-escalate the situation” by securing a framework agreement that delivers certainty for companies while safeguarding investment and employment, reports Breaking News.
Mr Harris made these remarks after meeting with US ambassador to Ireland, Ed Walsh.
From Government Buildings, Mr Harris said: “The message I relayed to the US ambassador is a consistent one and a very straightforward one: we in Ireland, we in Europe, want a deal, reports Breaking News.
“We want a trade deal that is good for Ireland, good for Europe, good for the United States of America, and I believe there is a clear landing zone in relation to that,” reports Breaking News.
Mr Harris said: “I believe there was a landing zone very nearly there last week, and it’s regrettable that that wasn’t arrived at,” reports Breaking News.
Despite the setback, he expressed optimism that an agreement could still be reached soon.
The European Commission is expected to publish a broadened list of counter-tariffs that would be introduced if no agreement is achieved.
He added that the best-case scenario would be to reach a deal that would make the counter-tariff list unnecessary, reports Breaking News.
“A countermeasure list is an important step of saying to President Trump: ‘Hang on, we want a deal here, we want a way forward, but if there isn’t a deal Europe also has options at its disposal’,” reports Breaking News.
The Tánaiste also said the Irish Government will study the list closely and consult with the European Commission to flag any “areas of concern for Ireland”.
In his meeting with Mr Walsh, the Tánaiste also addressed the pharmaceutical industry, which is currently the subject of a US section 232 trade investigation, reports Breaking News.
Mr Harris said the pharmaceutical sector remains a major area of concern for Ireland.
“Europe must remain calm, must remain united – our strength is in being united, 460 million of us – and must of course prepare for all scenarios.” reports Breaking News.
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