Sinn Féin will not give up fight against Mercosur – Clarke
Sinn Féin will not give up the fight against Mercosur, says Sorca Clarke, Sinn Féin TD for Longford Westmeath.
The party spokesperson on agriculture, Martin Kenny, TD, published Sinn Féin’s Dáil motion on the issue, which is to be debated today, Tuesday.
The motion calls on government to support a legal challenge to the deal by members of the EU parliament, mandate all Irish MEPs to vote against the deal, and for the government to engage directly with MEPs across the EU to urge them to reject the deal in the European Parliament.
Deputy Clarke condemned the decision of the EU Council to approve the Mercosur trade agreement as a bad day for Irish agriculture, the environment and public health.
She described the government’s 11th hour decision to vote against the agreement as a cynical manoeuvre only arrived at when Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil were safe in the knowledge that the vote would pass because of Italy’s decision to support it.
Teachta Clarke said: “While the Irish government voted against the deal, they had to be dragged kicking and screaming to this position by the combined opposition, the farm organisations and some of their own backbench TDs, but the public will see right through Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael’s manoeuvring.
“It was at the 11th hour that they cynically announced, in an act of political cowardice, that they would vote against Mercosur – only when they were safe in the knowledge that the vote would pass because of Italy’s decision to support it.
“We in Sinn Féin had been calling on this government for months to state their position on Mercosur, and for years we have been calling on successive FG and FF governments to take a leadership role in opposition to the deal.
“They repeatedly failed to stand up and be counted, and steadfastly refused to engage seriously with like-minded EU member states in forming a blocking minority.
“While the EU Council vote is disappointing and should be condemned, the campaign to put an end to this disastrous deal is not over.
“There is still a legal challenge to the deal by members of the EU parliament, including Sinn Féin MEPs, and there will be a vote in the EU parliament on the deal.
“The Sinn Féin motion would also mandate all their party MEPs to vote against the deal, and for the government to engage directly with MEPs across the EU to urge them to reject the deal in the EU parliament.
“Mercosur must be stopped, and the government needs to stand up and lead the opposition to this deal.”