Ministers will be briefed on Tuesday on US president Donald Trump’s threat to impose 30 per cent tariffs on goods from the European Union and how Ireland’s focus is to avoid a “full-blown trade war”.
The Cabinet will also be updated on plans for large-scale annual trade missions to key countries as Ireland seeks to diversify markets amid the uncertainty over trade with the US.
The first such trip will be to Canada in the autumn when Taoiseach Micheál Martin is set to meet prime minister Mark Carney on a mission that is expected to have several other ministers travelling.
The EU’s trade commissioner Maros Sefcovic has said Mr Trump’s threatened tariffs would practically “prohibit” the future flow of trade from Europe to the US.
RM Block
While the EU will seek to use the time before Mr Trump’s August 1st deadline for the new tariffs to find a negotiated solution, the European Commission is preparing its own set of tariffs if talks fail.
Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade Simon Harris will tell Cabinet that US tariffs of 30 per cent could have a significant impact on the economy, including potential job losses at a faster pace.
The Department of Finance is modelling the precise impact.
The Irish Times understands Mr Harris will tell colleagues that Ireland’s focus before August 1st is on negotiations to reach a deal to avoid the imposition of higher tariffs that could precipitate “a full-blown trade war between the EU and the US”.
He will also warn that the possibility of the EU imposing a revised list of counter tariffs in the event talks fail would cause pain on both sides.
Trade missions
Meanwhile, Minister for Enterprise Peter Burke will seek Cabinet approval to introduce annual Team Ireland Trade Missions every October in key markets, with potential for Irish exporters, closer political engagement, and potential foreign direct investment.
Canada has been selected this year; locations considered for future missions include India, China and the United Arab Emirates.
Camhs
Separately, Cabinet will be told there has been a very high level of uptake of a compensation scheme established in the wake of failings in Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (Camhs) in south Kerry.
The scheme was put in place following the Health Service Executive’s publication of the Maskey Report in 2022. There were deficits in care identified in the cases of 240 children and young people attending Camhs in south Kerry between July 2016 and April 2021.
Minister of State for Mental Health Mary Butler is expected to tell Cabinet that as of June 18th there have been 230 applications to the compensation scheme; 83 applications have gone to mediation so far and 74 (89 per cent) have concluded in a settlement.
[ Simon Harris tells US ambassador ‘landing zone’ can be found to avert trade warOpens in new window ]
Elsewhere, Minister for Justice Jim O’Callaghan is to seek approval for the heads of a Bill to implement recommendations from a report by Mr Justice Peter Kelly on civil justice reforms which was published in 2020.
If approved, the Bill will reform: discovery; judicial review; civil procedure in the courts; and jurisdiction in the Circuit and District Courts.
[ EU/US trade deal is still possible says Paschal DonohoeOpens in new window ]
Minister for Public Expenditure Jack Chambers will provide a briefing on State spending for the first half of 2025. By the end of June, current expenditure was up 6.5 per cent compared with the first six months of 2024 and capital expenditure was up 22.5 per cent.
He will tell Cabinet ministers the increase in capital spending underscores Government investment in infrastructure, including housing and education.
