Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

It seems to me that the point is that if they are going to have to pay these costs anyway into the future, then they would have a significant but reducing and lesser cost. That is a good bargaining position for them. In other words, their taxpayer does not have to foot all of the bill all of the time, and there will be a benefit to the taxpayer in the UK from a united Ireland because it will not cost them as much as it does now or will.