Proposed trade agreement would allow corporations bypass courts, say protesters

A protest against a proposed trade agreement between the EU and the USA is taking place in Dublin city this afternoon.

The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) agreement aims to get rid of trade barriers between Europe and the United States.

Demonstrators are meeting at Central Bank on Dame Street from 1pm this afternoon.

Organisers of today's protest say they're worried about what the TTIP agreement could do to manufacturing standards and workers' rights in the EU and in Ireland.

Barry Finnegan, a researcher with the Irish branch of the civil society group ATTAC, said that the Dublin protest will coincide with other demonstrations around Europe today.

"It’s in solidarity with protests that are going on all across Europe against the anti-democratic nature of the free trade deal between America and Europe," he said.

"It's going to force the privatisation of public services, including water; it's going to drive down workers' pay, conditions, and health and safety; it's going to reduce the quality of the food that we have; and it's going to elevate corporations to sovereign state status where they can bypass the Irish and European courts and sue Governments directly for laws and regulations that interfere in their profits."