Seán Crowe (Dublin South West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The ambassador is very welcome. I begin by offering my condolences, those of the committee, those of many of my constituents and those of others I have met to those affected by the attack on innocent civilians on Westminster Bridge. We are all familiar with Portcullis House from going in and out of it. I offer not only my condolences to those whose loved ones died, but also our hopes for speedy recoveries for all those who are recovering from injuries sustained in the attack.

I welcome the fact that H.E. Mr. Barnett said he is listening. He referred in particular to some of his trips to the Border communities, and the fact that he is listening is a very important message to send out from here. However, my view of the British Government is that its Brexit plan to date clearly shows that it is not listening but is ignoring the views of the majority in the North of Ireland which voted, as H.E. Mr. Barnett knows, to remain within the EU. He said the UK's Government's intention is to leave the Single Market and the customs union, and again, I think most people's views are that this will have a detrimental impact on the economy not only in the North, but also in the South of Ireland and the people in both areas. We argue that the British Government has no mandate to do this. The people of the North clearly voted in the referendum to remain in the EU but it is almost as if the vote is being disregarded or discarded as not as important as other votes. The people of Scotland would probably have a similar view in this regard. That the UK is treating people in the North as less important - some would say as second-class citizens - is infuriating a huge number of people. In the run-up to the Good Friday Agreement, much time was spent on consent, the difficulty trying to agree the wording, getting agreement from all the parties and so on. Now we see the consent of the people of the North being disregarded. It is regrettable that the British Government has adopted this position.

The last thing a society coming out of conflict needs is more fear and uncertainty and increased tension. No matter what one's position is, I think everyone accepts that that is where Brexit is leading us. I am conscious that H.E. Mr. Barnett is a diplomat and may not be able to answer some of these questions but perhaps he can give us some insight into some of my comments.

Does the ambassador agree that Brexit poses a severe threat? Does he agree it will undermine the institutional, constitutional and legal integrity of the Good Friday Agreement? The agreement is the foundation of the Irish peace process and defines the relationship within and between Ireland and Britain. Does he agree that in order to safeguard the Good Friday Agreement and Irish-British relations that the North should receive special status within the EU? This House adopted the view that a special status would be a positive and workable solution and made the suggestion. I am sure everyone will agree that the North needs a special arrangement. Even the Unionists have talked about having a special arrangement. Has the British Government considered the option? Will it consider the option?

The majority of the MLAs who were recently elected to the Assembly believe that a realistic alternative must be found for the North. Theresa May has talked about having a seamless and frictionless border. It is obvious that a hard economic border will be imposed on the island of Ireland but it is unworkable because we have 277 roads and 500 km of territory. I do not know how the British will impose a border when it leaves the customs union and the Single Market.

Other speakers have raised the issue of Gibraltar. Many people in Ireland have been shocked by remarks made about Gibraltar because there was a sniff of gunpowder about them. Lord Michael Howard stated that the British Government was willing to go to war with Spain over Gibraltar. I ask the ambassador to comment on Lord Howard's remarks. Interestingly, Gibraltar was not mentioned in the draft European Council guidelines but it was mentioned in Prime Minister May's letter last week to the EU to trigger Article 50. Can the ambassador provide an insight into why the Prime Minister did not mention Gibraltar in her letter considering the strong feelings expressed by a former Tory leader? My colleagues and I heard similar worries and concerns when we attended BIPA meetings. We were addressed by people from Gibraltar who expressed their difficulties with the situation. Again, I am conscious that the population of Gibraltar voted by a majority of 96% in favour of remaining in the EU but that democratic vote was ignored.

Prime Minister May has repeatedly ruled out Britain remaining in the Single Market or the customs union primarily due to an irrational fear of free movement within the EU. Can the ambassador give an insight into his Government's plans for a trade agreement with the EU? Will it be an agreement at all costs? People have expressed their concerns about having a default World Trade Organization. We are trying to pick up all of the signals and listen to what people are saying. Phillip Hammond has said that he personally hopes Britain can remain part of mainstream European economic and social thinking and the ambassador said much the same in his speech. If Ireland is forced to do something different then we will do so. Mr. Hammond mentioned options, including cutting corporation tax, to regain competitiveness. Jeremy Corbyn shared his concern when he stated that he feared the British Government was attempting to establish itself as a low tax haven. Many people we talked to in Europe have expressed their concerns that the North of Ireland will be used as a dumping ground for cheap food, goods, etc. Can the ambassador give us an insight into the British Government's plan in terms of this matter?

The British Government has committed to scrapping the Human Rights Act I have been told that the plans are on hold to end the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice and the European Convention on Human Rights. These matters are separate from the Brexit negotiations but run parallel with them. These matters have created a great amount of concern. The Human Rights Act is one of the pillars of the Good Friday Agreement and subsequent agreements. Many of us believe that repealing these matters would be a direct violation of the agreements. We have been told that these matters are under review. Can the ambassador give us an insight into when the British Government plans to repeal the Human Rights Act? We view such a measure as violating the peace agreement.

Last week, the Scottish Government voted in favour of holding a second referendum and the First Minister of Scotland, Ms Nicola Sturgeon, has written to Prime Minister May formally requesting that. Scotland voted overwhelmingly in favour of remaining in the EU yet the country is being dragged out of the EU against its will, according to First Minister Sturgeon, without an influence or input into negotiations as all power is being centralised in London. Considering all of that and the democratic vote by the Scottish Parliament, will the British Government facilitate a second independence referendum in Scotland before it is forced out of the EU by a Government that the Scottish people clearly did not vote for?

I have major concerns about the impact Brexit will have on the island of Ireland. I hope the ambassador can answer my questions. The view is that Brexit was triggered without an understanding or concern about the impact it would have on Ireland, particularly the peace process. I am disappointed that the peace process and situation in the North did not feature in the campaign to leave the EU. There is a large proportion of people on this island who feel that Brexit will be disastrous for Ireland. The negative impact did not feature in the referendum campaign. We hope that the relationship between Ireland and Britain continues. Current negotiations will have an impact on the future relationship between both countries.