Taoiseach warns of potential threat of 'transatlantic trade shocks'
Taoiseach Simon Harris indirectly referred to the US election. Picture: Niall Carson/PAÂ
Taoiseach Simon Harris has warned of the potential threat of “transatlantic trade shocks”, just hours after Donald Trump was elected as the next US president.
Mr Trump has repeatedly promised to introduce tariffs on goods imported into the US from the EU, with pledges that such taxes will be up to 10%.Â
He has said even higher tariffs will be placed on goods coming from China, up to 60%.
The US president-elect has also pledged to bring US multinationals home, with a promise to cut corporation tax to 15% — potentially removing Ireland’s competitive edge.
During Leaders’ Questions on Wednesday, Mr Harris said he was looking forward to debating with Sinn Féin over policies around managing the economy.
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However, he indirectly referred to the US election and said that the main opposition party would leave no money aside as a buffer.
“I look forward to debating this Government's record in terms of managing our economy and managing the public purse versus your policies and your spend it all,” Mr Harris said.
“Leave nothing for the buffer times or leave nothing if there's any transatlantic trade shocks, a policy that, quite frankly, looks surely foolish and ridiculous today.”
Finance Minister Jack Chambers said the US Presidential election "has far-reaching consequences" and nowhere is this "more true than in Ireland – given strong historical, cultural and economic links with the US".
"Put simply, the US is Ireland’s single-most important economic partner. Therefore, the economic policies pursued by the next US President will undoubtedly permeate through to the Irish economy. We will work with the new administration in a constructive manner – as we always do and as a Government we worked successfully with the previous Trump administration.
"Our bilateral relationship will continue to be mutually beneficial."
Mr Trump taking over in the White House could lead to additional pressure on Ireland through tariffs, with Enterprise Minister Peter Burke saying this is the “last thing” Ireland wants to see.
“We think it’s very important to have fair, rules based trade. It’s the best way for our relationship to grow and prosper.”
A senior government minister said the Irish-American relationship will now be "delicately managed" and accepted that the landscape has changed.
While senior sources say that the Irish-American relationship is "deep" and "meaningful", they say that dealing with Mr Trump will be a "different challenge" than with president Joe Biden.
They said that Mr Trump is not likely to be openly antagonistic, but Mr Biden's open warmth for Ireland is unlikely to be replicated.
For undocumented Irish living in the US, Mr Burke said he believes there is a “lot of work to do”.
He said work had been done previously to deal with undocumented Irish, with a direct appeal by former Taoiseach Enda Kenny to Mr Trump.
“There were points in time where it looked like we were going to make significant improvements and it didn’t come to pass,” Mr Burke said.
The enterprise minister said previous efforts ran into trouble in the US congress during the last Trump administration.
Questioned about the potential impact on the ongoing war in Gaza and Lebanon, Micheál Martin said it “could go either way”.
“One of the challenges will be that he has not been sympathetic at all to Palestinian self-determination, which we believe strongly in, and the two-state solution,” the Tánaiste told RTÉ.
Green Party leader Roderic O’Gorman acknowledged Mr Trump's win, but declined to congratulate him.
He said that Ireland would continue to have a close relationship with the US, but that the result cannot undermine progress on tackling climate change.
Mr O’Gorman also offered his sympathies to women who have had reproductive rights curtailed in recent years.
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