Cracks are starting to appear in the Government's stance on the Mercosur trade deal.
The deal is heading into its final days of negotiations, with president of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen said to be pushing hard in Brussels to get the deal across the line.
A reshuffle of Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) funds and the temporary suspension of tariffs on some fertilisers in a bid to offset costs associated with the carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM) tax were announced by the Commission this week.
This is expected to sway France and Italy in support of the deal, which then leaves a blocking minority against the agreement impossible to build.
A vote is still set to take place on Friday, with EU ambassadors voting on the deal in Brussels.
Frustrations
The Irish Government still hasn’t adopted an official stance on the deal, with several Government ministers kicking to touch on any questions around Ireland’s official decision on the vote.
This is said to be frustrating some of the independent partners in the coalition and a meeting took place on Wednesday afternoon between all the coalition partners in Government to discuss the Mercosur deal and Ireland's position on it.
Backbench TDs in the Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil parties have also spoken out against the deal.
Recall
This meeting took place against the backdrop of a story breaking on the Irish Farmers Journal around Brazilian beef, with illegal hormones entering the Irish food chain in September 2025. The beef was imported from Northern Ireland and made its way to three food businesses in the Republic of Ireland.
Speaking in Brussels in December, An Taoiseach Micheál Martin commented about Ireland’s decision on Mercosur needing to be “taken in the round” of Ireland achieving a three-year extension of its nitrates derogation.
The comments didn’t go down well with farm organisations, with Irish Farmers Association (IFA) president Francie Gorman calling on the Taoiseach to clarify his comments.
Cattle at a factory in Brazil. \ Philip Doyle
Gorman said: “These are two separate and distinct issues. For the Taoiseach to appear to link them is utterly unacceptable. There is a clear commitment on both issues in the Programme for Government.
“The Taoiseach must now clarify if he has done some backroom deal with Ursula von der Leyen to back Mercosur and to sell out Ireland’s beef and poultry farmers,” he said last month.
Minister against Mercosur
Speaking from China on Wednesday morning, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said “a lot of progress” had been made in relation to the issues being discussed in relation to the Mercosur trade deal.
However, speaking to the Irish Farmers Journal from Brussels on Wednesday afternoon on Friday’s vote, Minister for Agriculture Martin Heydon said: “That will be a decision made collectively by Government, but people won’t be surprised to know that I view Mercosur negatively."
Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture Michael Healy-Rae has said the Taoiseach's earlier comments were “not helpful” and that the coalition independents remain strongly opposed to the agreement.
Read more
Mercosur vote could take place on Friday 9 January
Brussels suspends tariffs on some fertilisers to offset CBAM costs
Brazilian beef containing illegal hormone entered Irish food chain
Cracks are starting to appear in the Government's stance on the Mercosur trade deal.
The deal is heading into its final days of negotiations, with president of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen said to be pushing hard in Brussels to get the deal across the line.
A reshuffle of Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) funds and the temporary suspension of tariffs on some fertilisers in a bid to offset costs associated with the carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM) tax were announced by the Commission this week.
This is expected to sway France and Italy in support of the deal, which then leaves a blocking minority against the agreement impossible to build.
A vote is still set to take place on Friday, with EU ambassadors voting on the deal in Brussels.
Frustrations
The Irish Government still hasn’t adopted an official stance on the deal, with several Government ministers kicking to touch on any questions around Ireland’s official decision on the vote.
This is said to be frustrating some of the independent partners in the coalition and a meeting took place on Wednesday afternoon between all the coalition partners in Government to discuss the Mercosur deal and Ireland's position on it.
Backbench TDs in the Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil parties have also spoken out against the deal.
Recall
This meeting took place against the backdrop of a story breaking on the Irish Farmers Journal around Brazilian beef, with illegal hormones entering the Irish food chain in September 2025. The beef was imported from Northern Ireland and made its way to three food businesses in the Republic of Ireland.
Speaking in Brussels in December, An Taoiseach Micheál Martin commented about Ireland’s decision on Mercosur needing to be “taken in the round” of Ireland achieving a three-year extension of its nitrates derogation.
The comments didn’t go down well with farm organisations, with Irish Farmers Association (IFA) president Francie Gorman calling on the Taoiseach to clarify his comments.
Cattle at a factory in Brazil. \ Philip Doyle
Gorman said: “These are two separate and distinct issues. For the Taoiseach to appear to link them is utterly unacceptable. There is a clear commitment on both issues in the Programme for Government.
“The Taoiseach must now clarify if he has done some backroom deal with Ursula von der Leyen to back Mercosur and to sell out Ireland’s beef and poultry farmers,” he said last month.
Minister against Mercosur
Speaking from China on Wednesday morning, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said “a lot of progress” had been made in relation to the issues being discussed in relation to the Mercosur trade deal.
However, speaking to the Irish Farmers Journal from Brussels on Wednesday afternoon on Friday’s vote, Minister for Agriculture Martin Heydon said: “That will be a decision made collectively by Government, but people won’t be surprised to know that I view Mercosur negatively."
Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture Michael Healy-Rae has said the Taoiseach's earlier comments were “not helpful” and that the coalition independents remain strongly opposed to the agreement.
Read more
Mercosur vote could take place on Friday 9 January
Brussels suspends tariffs on some fertilisers to offset CBAM costs
Brazilian beef containing illegal hormone entered Irish food chain
SHARING OPTIONS