Martin warns against protectionist attitudes to global trade

THE global recession will only worsen, if Governments revert to protectionist attitudes to global trade, according to Minister for Foreign Affairs Micheál Martin, who called on countries to “trade our way out” of the current crisis.

Mr Martin said, in previous times of difficulty, protectionism (keeping jobs, goods and capital at home) only made recessions worse, and it is more important than ever that countries look at the bigger picture and do not look inwards.

He addressed business leaders and Irish entrepreneurs in Mexico.

The visit kick-starts the minister’s attempts to reassure the global community about the strength of the Irish economy and finance system. Mr Martin has instructed senior diplomats to arrange meetings with international investors, financial institutions and representatives of other governments in the coming weeks to restore Ireland’s damaged reputation.

Addressing business leaders yesterday, he said: “We are in challenging times globally and the global financial crisis has different manifestations in different economies. I think what is particularly important is that we keep focused on the big picture and we don’t become imprisoned or paralysed by the moment which is a very tempting trend or orientation for governments and for societies.

“People tend to look inwards, people become concerned, and so on, about their own immediate situation and, above all, we must avoid an inward, protectionist philosophy which could very easily emerge in times like this. We know in previous decades, when the world was in difficulty, the move to protectionism benefited no one in the end.” Mr Martin said Ireland is “committed fundamentally” to a free trade environment and export-led growth will be a “key part” of economic recovery.

Cork businessman and vice-president of Irish Chamber of Commerce in Mexico, Des Mullarkey, said: “Mexico is an open economy, Ireland is an open economy and both countries are committed to free trade.

Open and free trade is crucial for our competitiveness. We are facing a challenge now globally. Having said that, there have been challenges of a greater scale faced in the past and they have overcome those and, in this particular instance, we will overcome it again, hopefully in the short term. To take a step back towards protectionism hopefully would be fundamental and catastrophic mistake.”