Frank O'Rourke (Kildare North, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I will be very brief. To come in on the back of the comments which have already been made I, like others, would like to know what the witnesses see as the major challenges in dealing with Europe's problems and the negativity surrounding it. In the recent Brexit vote we saw opportunism, selective negativity and campaigning being used to achieve an outcome. Some of the leaders involved at the time are no longer around to follow through on the commitments and promises which were given should people in the UK vote to leave the EU. That was being selective. What are the witnesses' opinions on the best way to approach the likes of that into the future, so that other countries do not take the same actions? What is the best way to ensure breakaway groups do not promote the same type of campaign, which could lead to further splits within the EU? I know that the EU itself has mechanisms for dealing with that. It is taking a hard line with the UK at the moment. That might not result in the desired outcome, but it will not stop other countries or splinter groups advocating to leave the EU in the interim.

When one goes out to rural Ireland, it is felt that there is a major disconnect between the EU and the ordinary people of Ireland who are operating and working daily. While the people of rural Ireland acknowledge all the excellent benefits which have come from Europe - and I am pro-Europe myself - they feel that some of the legislation and regulations which have come in have made it difficult for different areas to operate, as they are introduced on an umbrella basis and one does not fit all. Sometimes such a vacuum can create an energy to oppose the EU or the establishment. Do the witnesses see any way to reconnect if such a disconnect is there? It is felt on the ground. Whether it is real and whether it is isolated cases or a general feeling, it is felt. Will the witnesses also address that issue?