Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I hope the Taoiseach will not continue the extraordinary and petulant line taken by the Tánaiste yesterday when he basically accused anyone who was questioning the Government of undermining the country. It has to be said there are very legitimate questions people have a right and duty to raise in discussing this issue. The Government's obsession with spin means that people are increasingly unwilling to take its claims at face value, which is an unfortunate consequence. The very direct issue is how the unagreed backstop text will be turned into a final text. Most non-Irish commentators have said Monday represented the kicking of the can down the road for a few months. The comfort of the Tory Brexit fanatics with what has been agreed to on Ireland suggests no significant progress has been made. Will the Taoiseach explain to the House the exact process between Friday and a final backstop text? Will he confirm that there will be no agreement to proceed to final status discussions until the final withdrawal treaty is completely finished, other than for the most minor of technical discussions? There is a real danger that the issue will be isolated down the road. Therefore, it needs to be brought to a head sooner rather than later.

On the east-west axis, people tend to forget that the east-west relationship is critical economically to the island, North and South. It is absolutely critical, not just in terms of the agrifood sector but also to industry, SMEs, the midlands and the west. There are times when the discussion takes place on Brexit and that dimension is not brought to the fore to the degree it should be. It is critical that we get the relationship between the European Union and the United Kingdom right.

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