Pascal Donohoe has said Ireland cannot be part of the current deal on the table for global reform on corporate tax.

More than 100 countries have signed up to a plan on new reforms, but the Finance Minister has said that Ireland is not in that agreement.

Mr Donohoe said he is committed to Ireland retaining its low corporate tax of 12.5pc.

“What is on the table is an agreement that Ireland cannot be a part of”, said the Minister regarding the global agreement that is proposing a minimum corporate tax rate of 15 pc.

Mr Donohoe said a number of countries have signed up to the agreement to increase and put in place a minimum corporate tax of at least 15pc, but “Ireland is not in that agreement”.

The Fine Gael TD said negotiations are still ongoing, and it is important not to rule anything out.

“We are committed to the negotiation to see if we can enter the agreement at some point,” he told RTE Radio One This Morning.

He said Ireland’s current corporation tax of 12.5 pc has been a “key feature” of the economic policy for decades.

Early next week there will be a public consultation on the agreement as currently drafted to brief business stakeholders in the country.

“If I had announced very suddenly last week that we were going to enter into this agreement, there would have been issues there for people who have invested in our economy,” he said.

Ireland is one of a “small group” of countries currently not in the drafted agreement.

“If there is an agreement that I believe is in our national interest to be a part of, I would recommend that to the government. What I am doing is making the case for our 12.5 pc rate and for the right of a small or medium sized economies to have a low rate as part of their competitiveness,” he said.