Fears over the number of workers that would be displaced as a result of a proposed transatlantic trade agreement are unjustified and pale in significance when compared to the natural rise and fall of Irish industries, the jobs minister claimed yesterday.

Get a taste of some of the interesting and quirky happenings in Europe from our Europe correspondent, Ann Cahill.

A fall in profits caused by regulatory changes will not be sufficient grounds for an investor to sue a sovereign state as part of a proposed transatlantic trade agreement, according to the EU Commission.

The imposition of water charges by the government has shown how an apathetic people can be pushed to their limits, resulting in huge marches all around the county. Unfortunately what has been missing in this whole sorry tale is the role of the European Union (EU).

EU ministers unanimously agreed to make a fresh push for an EU-US trade deal despite huge differences over a mechanism to allow firms fend off new laws that they believe would militate against them.

We are in a brief hiatus in the negotiations between the EU and US on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP). 

With regard to Mrs U Forinton’s letter (Irish Examiner, Oct 9), the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership Agreement, which is being negotiated in Brussels, is of grave concern to me and to many of my constituents.