Frances Black (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I will be brief. The witnesses' presentation was excellent, very clear and precise. Obviously, I am very concerned and really pick up on the anxieties. It is very scary - terrifying actually - particularly when I hear that Westminster is out of its depth and does not know what is going on or how to deal with it. That really concerns me. The fact that I am not sure that Northern Ireland is a priority is very concerning. I do not think it will be top of the British Government's priorities. I think Northern Ireland - particularly in terms of Cushendall, Cushendun, north Antrim and Rathlin Island - is probably one of the beautiful parts of this country. The tourism industry was really devastated during the conflict. I used to travel up to my father's home in the North with my family. I could not believe there was no tourism there back then. One could understand why this was the case in light of the conflict but it started to come back and I see that now. I go back up there all the time and I see the southern-registered cars, in particular, and also cars with British registrations. There is no doubt that it has picked up. My concern is that this would be impacted upon again. Coming from a farming background with family in Northern Ireland, the impact would, from a farming perspective, be devastating.

I have a very simple question. I know we talk about special status for the island of Ireland. Recently, the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government spoke about working towards a united Ireland in one of his campaign speeches. What are the witnesses' thoughts on that? Would it be beneficial? I know that when we are looking at special status for Northern Ireland, it will be very complicated. In addition, I understand that if we ever did work towards a united Ireland, that would also be very complicated bearing in mind the fact that the Good Friday Agreement is very important and plays a huge role. What are the witnesses' thoughts on working towards a united Ireland? Would it help in any way or be beneficial?