Paul Coghlan (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The witnesses are very welcome. Naturally, Brexit is dominating all our thinking and will continue to do so because it looks like we will continue to have this volatility and uncertainty. The UK will be a full member for the next three years and perhaps there will need to be a transition beyond that. This means that the UK will have its full complement of MEPs. Could the witnesses tell us what will happen after that date, be it 2019? When do the witnesses believe the negotiations about the so-called seamless Border we want will get serious? Nobody wants a hard Border. Are we not being led to believe that until the UK decides how much it will contribute to the budget for the next number of years, no serious negotiations will start? Perhaps that will not start until some time later this year after the German elections. I would like to hear our guests' comments on that. There seems to be huge uncertainty beyond natural uncertainty and we are not even approaching the starting point. They are the serious matters for us.