Taoiseach welcomes EU-US Joint Statement on Trade

“I welcome today's publication of the Joint Statement on trade between the European Commission and US.

“It brings greater clarity and certainty to what the agreement between the EU and the US will mean in practice. This is especially important for enterprises that either import from or export to the US.

“Given the scale of the pharmaceutical and semiconductor sectors in Ireland, it is important that the Joint Statement confirms that 15% is a ceiling that will apply to EU exports in these areas in all circumstances, including when the current US Section 232 investigations are concluded.

“While I have been clear all along that I do not support tariffs, this is a significant win for the EU.

“Given the significance of the airline sector to Ireland, a specific carve-out for aircraft and aircraft parts is also welcome.

“There are areas where further work remains to be done, including a potential carve-out for med-tech products and spirits. I hope this will be advanced as quickly as possible. We will continue to advocate for these sectors given their significant importance to our domestic economy.

“As I have consistently said, tariffs are bad, bad for business and bad for consumers. There is no doubt that the tariffs now imposed by the US on EU products will have a negative impact on many businesses and on consumers both in the EU and the US.

“But the publication of the Joint Statement does provide a degree of certainty and predictability that is so important for business and investment decisions.

“I wish to thank President von der Leyen, Commissioner Šefčovič and their teams, and the US team, for their diligent work over the last number of weeks.

The Government will continue to work closely with the European Commission, our fellow EU Member States, and with the US to build on the Joint Statement and pursue an ambitious trade and investment agenda between the EU and the US, the two largest economies in the world.”

ENDS