The US has asked the World Trade Organisation to establish a panel to decide whether Ireland is breaking open trading rules by failing to tighten its copyright laws. The US ambassador to the WTO, Ms Rita Hayes, said Ireland had shown "a very broad spectrum of non-compliance", with an accord on protecting global property, part of a 1994 global trade pact.

Present regulations, which the Government had promised to change, allowed "criminal piracy" an easy run, she said. But the panel request, also targeted against the EU which negotiates for all its members, was blocked by Brussels officials, who said they wanted more time for consultation with Washington.