Joe O'Reilly (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State and his officials. I thought it was apt that the Minister of State welcomed the members of the diplomatic corps.

Initially, I wish to address the humanitarian issue, but I will then deal with economic matters that have implications not only for Ireland but also for the constituency of Cavan-Monaghan, which I have the privilege of representing. Migration is the major humanitarian crisis. People who lost their homes have paid their life savings into the hands of people who, having no care for their welfare, have herded them onto ships and put them in real danger. There has been significant loss of life. It is good that the EU has worked on this and set out a programme to deal with the gangsters and police the area. Obviously, it is policy to share the burden among European states. It is a very complex and difficult matter. I am happy that we are providing the naval vessel LE Eithneto help with policing as well as an additional €2 million in funding. We must play our part. All EU countries will have to play their part, which will demand a high level of co-ordination. Each country will be required by agreement to make an input in a structured way, instead ofad hoc charity, and to take a share of the migrants. It cannot be left to Italy or Spain to deal with the problem. Will the Minister of State inform the committee of how it is proposed to co-ordinate the efforts of individual countries so that each country will carry a burden proportionate to its size, population and resources? No country has a greater sensitivity to this crisis than Ireland. Any Irish person with a sense of history could only have a real empathy for these people.

I was happy to hear a reference to the forthcoming discussion on the digital economy. This is an area of tremendous growth in Ireland both in terms of inward investment and domestic developments. It offers great career potential and economic and social opportunities for our people. The great weakness in our infrastructure is the lack of a universal high-speed broadband service.

There is patchiness and in areas with dispersed populations there are difficulties in this regard. I am aware of the national broadband plan and its objectives are welcome because it is of critical importance that every home in every area of the country has high speed broadband. It is the modern equivalent of rural electrification. Is there anything further the Minister of State thinks can be done at European level to assist and even speed up our domestic efforts in this area as people are fed up with the delays? How does he assess the opportunity to provide for further investment? Large areas of my constituency of Cavan-Monaghan, especially the smaller villages and dispersed rural populations, do not have access to quality broadband and, in many cases, to any broadband service at all. That needs correction as it is an injustice. A divide is developing in the country and, while I know it is because of topography and the lack of commercial viability, intervention is needed. I know that an intervention is planned, but this issue is very urgent. It is a real issue in Cavan-Monaghan.

Another issue in our area is the weakness of the euro relative to sterling, which presents a tremendous opportunity to secure Internet sales and engage in marketing in the sterling area, including Northern Ireland. There is a tremendous business opportunity in the Border region, specifically Cavan-Monaghan which I represent. To take advantage of it, traders need to have confidence and an awareness of the potential, but they also need broadband to support it. Will the Minister of State comment on this opportunity for people in my area and suggest what we can do to assist?

The next issue the Minister of State addressed, which is relevant to my constituency and the country, was the TTIP negotiations. Will he look into his crystal ball and say how he sees it panning out in the coming weeks, months and years? Will he publicly assure me and the people I represent that Ireland will bat for the domestic agriculture industry in the context of the TTIP? Cavan-Monaghan is unique in having a huge dependence on primary production, with farmers, agribusiness and food processing. Agrifood related jobs account for the vast bulk of all jobs in the area; therefore, anything that threatens agriculture will devastate the economy of the region.

The Chairman spoke about the possible exit of the United Kingdom from the European Union. Personally I do not believe it will happen but that rationality will prevail and people's business and economic sense will tell them the importance of inward investment and the potential of the markets within the European Union. The debate the United Kingdom will hold on the subject will change minds in favour of jobs and livelihoods and I believe sanity will prevail. Nevertheless, we have to address the risks involved. My concern is from a national perspective, but the implications of a British withdrawal would be aggravated in Cavan-Monaghan and right along the Border because of the prospect of customs control, the need for passports and the impact on businesses. Will the Minister of State give us an assurance that Ireland will maintain a strong watching brief and that we will engage in bilateral initiatives with the Commission and the UK Government to protect Irish interests? We need to try to prevent the breakaway, but in the event that we fail to do so, we need to have a contingency plan to protect Irish interests, which means the Irish economy and especially the economy of the Border region. It would be remiss of a representative of a Border constituency to attend this meeting and not to emphasise the devastating impact if people such as the Minister of State did not make the necessary interventions to prevent the worst effects of a British withdrawal from the European Union.