A new international treaty on foreign investment could strengthen the interests of multinational companies over those of workers in poor communities, a seminar in Dublin has heard.
The Multilateral Agreement on Investment (MAI), under negotiation by OECD countries and due to be finalised in May, will exacerbate inequality if it proceeds in its current form, according to Ms Ruth Maine, policy adviser with Oxfam UK.
To counter this, she suggested, communities must have the right to bring claims directly against investors and present their views to any tribunal considering investment disputes.
Organised jointly by Trocaire and Oxfam, the seminar also heard the MAI could allow companies "to sue governments for introducing environmental or social legislation which might curb the operations of foreign investors".
Mr Nick Mabey, an economist with the Worldwide Fund for Nature, said the fear was borne out by the experience of other special agreements such as the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Citing the example of a US corporation which was suing the Canadian government for banning as toxic a petrol additive produced by the company, he said: "Canada is a member of the G8. Just think of the impact of the OECD countries lining up their combined weight against low-income developing nations."
The junior Minister with responsibility for Labour, Trade and Consumer Affairs, Mr Tom Kitt, told the audience that, given the key role foreign investment had played in our economic success, adopting the MAI was a logical next step for Ireland.
With minor exceptions, he said, foreign investors faced no legal barriers in this country and a clear message had gone out that Ireland welcomed foreign investment.
But, during debate on the issues raised by speakers, the Minister was accused of presenting a selfserving version of the Irish experience. Mr Peadar Kirby, author of the Trocaire publication Poverty and Plenty, said the weakness of Irish indigenous industry was a cautionary tale for others, while the recent Seagate collapse was the latest example of the dangers of overdependence on foreign investment.
