Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I will reply to the questions in reverse order and respond to those who are present. In response to what Senator Craughwell said about a hard Brexit, we are doing everything in our power to avoid that. It is the last scenario we want to happen.

In terms of contingency planning, we are planning and we have started recruitment. Last week the Cabinet gave approval to begin recruiting approximately 450 staff, which is very much focused on an east-west basis to deal with additional customs, veterinary and food safety inspectors at airports and ports, but it is only on an east-west basis. When we say that we cannot countenance the return to any kind of border, whether it is with checks, barriers, associated checks or barriers, non-tariff barriers or whatever else, we mean it and that is very much the position we have taken. It is on the basis that the UK and the EU have given that same commitment and the fact that it is so intrinsically linked to the Good Friday Agreement which has been signed by all three parties. What we must do now is do everything in power, intensify our efforts, double our negotiation efforts and try to make sure we reach a deal, or as much as we can by the October deadline, which allows us then to finalise something in November if there is to be a meeting then.

We are still going through the subsidiarity report. I will come back to the Chairman on that. I will refer to a few points he raised, some of which have more of a local and national element. The budget will take place in the coming weeks and whatever will happen in that regard will happen. In terms of tourism, the ability of people to travel freely on an EU-wide basis is one of the significant benefits of the European Union. Following Brexit, approximately 450 million people will continue to be able to travel to Ireland, experience it and enjoy it. Hopefully, the UK will continue to enjoy such access as well. As part of the overall withdrawal agreement, we have agreed with the UK that the common travel area will continue, as it predates membership of the EU for both countries and allows for citizens of both countries to travel freely from North to South and east to west, including to Scotland and Wales. That is something on which we have worked very hard in recent months and years and we hope it will continue and that people will be able to come and enjoy this country.

Farmers have had a particularly tough year, not least with the weather. We might be able to control some things but the weather is not something we can control. I was at the IFA meeting today. I would not dream of missing it. There are a number of things we are trying to do, first in terms of the CAP. As I indicated in my submission, given that more than 80% of funding from the EU goes directly to farmers we know the benefit it has to them, their families and communities and the ripple effect it has and we feel it is imperative that we continue to get the same level of support for farmers, which is something we are working very hard to do at a European level. In terms of Brexit preparedness, we know that from the moment the vote happened, changes to sterling and various other factors meant that certain agricultural sectors were impacted straight away, in particular the mushroom industry. Since then we have tried to mitigate the impact through budgetary and other measures. We are looking at putting measures in place post Brexit. Each Department is identifying possible challenges and what measures need to be put in place and each Minister has been asked to put an action plan in place based on the work which will feed into their work plans. From an agriculture point of view the chairman of the IFA, the fisheries board and other representatives attend a stakeholder forum and we engage with them as much as possible.

Deputy Haughey referred to migration, which is one of the biggest challenges. I agree that we are removed from it to some extent, but we do not think we should remove ourselves from the conversation and the support and solidarity we provide in co-operation with member states. The dynamic has changed slightly. The number of illegal migrants coming through the European border has decreased by approximately 95% since its peak a few years ago.

What we must do now is ensure future policies will work, that they will support the people they are supposed to and that there will be co-operation among member states to implement them, which is often the hardest thing to do. As I noted, we are working on a number of things. The suggestions in respect of the disembarkation platforms are still being worked through, while there is a proposal that there be an additional 10,000 Frontex along borders. There is also consideration of the Dublin regulation and a common European asylum system to try to reform it. We will continue to support Operation Sophia and take in refugees and migrants where we can. Showing how they can integrate and implementing successful policies are very important. I do not know if members had the opportunity to attend the launch today of a book entitled 45 Stories, a project of the European Commission in Ireland. It takes into account various projects ranging from individual businesses to the environment and elsewhere and how the European Union has supported them. The project in my county of Meath focused on individuals who had come to Ireland from outside the European Union, as well as tackling issues such as racism and workplace discrimination, among others. We need to continue working on them, while also looking at the bigger picture and supporting other member states.

Our relationship with the United Kingdom will continue after Brexit to be important and valuable. Physically, it is our closest neighbour, but it has also been our closest friend on many big issues and we do not want that to change after Brexit. The British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference met for the first time during the summer. There has been continuous engagement among Ministers on matters of mutual interest. We are looking at opening a new embassy in Cardiff and adding additional staff to the embassy in London. We try to engage as much as we can, but what we cannot do during the negotiations is engage in bilateral or side negotiations with the United Kingdom. If we were to do so, our solidarity with and position among the other 26 member states would be no more. Therefore, we need to hold firm, but that does not mean ostracising or alienating anyone. Having been in Salzburg, my view is that member states merely reiterated the European Union's position, namely, that we cannot break up the Single Market, that there are elements of the Chequers paper that would work and others that would not. From an Irish point of view, we merely restated our position that there could not be the reimposition of a hard border on the island of Ireland. We cannot predict how that came across or how it was portrayed. What is important is that we work together, that the United Kingdom bring forward its own proposals that it states it has and that we try to reach an agreement.

Senator Terry Leyden has raised the matter of a EU-UK economic zone before. To me, it suggests Ireland is different from the rest of the European Union. I do not think that is something at which we should look. Our trade with the United Kingdom is significantly higher in agriculture, but our overall trade is less than 16%, whereas last year our overall trade with the European Union was almost twice that figure, at 33%. We need to be very strong in our commitment to the European Union, while trying to secure the best possible outcome overall.

On the redistribution of seats, a process was undertaken. I understand the northern constituency lost two counties and did not gain a seat, but the southern constituency gained two counties, while the constituency of Dublin gained another. I do not know where the challenges and uncertainty surrounding the position f Northern Ireland may have fitted into it.

I thank members for their support and engagement. Our focus is on Brexit and trying to secure the best possible outcome. We continue to work on everyone's behalf in order that there will be as little disruption as possible to people's lives, their businesses and communities and that ultimately we still have a strong relationship with the United Kingdom from which we can move forward.