Taoiseach Micheál Martin has said the Government’s “over-arching priority” is to protect Irish jobs amid concerns US President Donald Trump’s incoming tariff plans could see pharmaceutical and other firms reduce their presence in Ireland.
Speaking to RTÉ News at an event in Limerick, the Taoiseach said “tariffs are bad for the world economy and a trade war will be very bad for the world economy”.
Mr Martin added that after an era in the 1990s and early 2000s of globalisation, “we’re now moving into an era of potential protectionism” involving “tariffs and retaliatory tariffs”, warning “that’s not good for anybody”.
Mr Trump also unveiled a 25% tariff on imported vehicles, expanding a global trade war and prompting criticism and threats of retaliation from affected US allies.
Asked if the US tariffs plan could see pharmaceutical firms in Ireland leave this country or reduce their presence in the State, Mr Martin said: “I think we have to take this step by step, they’re [pharmaceutical firms] long-standing and embedded, and are producing high quality and essential medicines, so you just can’t dismantle that overnight.
“Our objective is to engage with a view to working through this, and the over-arching priority is the protection of jobs and the protection and maintenance of facilities in Ireland
“But it is serious, this is a fundamental change in terms of economic policy.”
He added: “If you look through from the late 1990s and 2000s onwards, we were in an era of globalisation.
“We’re now moving into an era of potential protectionism and tariffs and retaliatory tariffs, that’s not good for anybody.”
Mr Martin said the Government is “working through” plans “in terms of how we develop a response to this”.
He said this includes strengthening Ireland’s indigenous businesses, “copper-fastening existing relationships” with countries like Canada, and working with other EU member states in “expanding the single market”.
Mr Martin added that he has had “brief discussions” with European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen about what measures may be needed, but said Ireland will “also be engaging bilaterally” with the Trump administration.
Yesterday, Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe said he is “extremely concerned” about the potential impact of proposed US tariffs on pharmaceutical exports, warning they could deliver a major blow to Ireland’s economy.
Speaking on RTÉ’s Prime Time, Mr Donohoe said the Government is preparing for “real and significant” difficulties if US President Donald Trump follows through on threats to impose tariffs on drug imports, including those from Ireland.
“I want to underline the scale of the change that we might have to deal with, the various significant and real difficulties that could present for our economy,” the minister said.