David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Exactly. In a no-deal scenario my point is the biggest contingency we will have to deal with is what happens at the Border.

With regard to the process, I welcome the fact that the Minister is making himself available for briefings. It might be useful if other Ministers make themselves available to spokespersons with regard to their respective sections of the Bill. This might be necessary. It depends on the depth of the provisions and we will wait to see what is in the Bill when we get it. It seems that it will be substantial in some areas, which is good.

With regard to the provisions in the Bill relevant to the Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation, the Bill speaks about further support for businesses, loans and research and development, all of which is good. It could be argued that it is necessary whether there is a soft or hard Brexit. IBEC and ISME have been calling for these provisions. There will be an economic impact regardless of whether or not it is a hard crash. Why is it only in the event of a hard crash that we would put in place these additional resources? Something that is not covered, which I have heard raised at meetings of the transport committee, is the insurance green card. Perhaps the Minister is in a position to answer questions on it. It has also been raised in the national media. Concern has been expressed about why it is not covered in the Bill. Is it something that will be covered somewhere else? How will the Government deal with the issue?

Will some of the provisions of the Bill require additional spending? If so, will the Minister identify from where the additional money will come and in what areas additional spending will be incurred?

While it is a given that investment will have to be made by the Irish State, what is coming through from the stakeholders I have met, such as the British Irish Chamber of Commerce, business groups and trade unions, is that Europe also needs to step up to the plate in respect of funding streams and easing state aid rules. Where is that in the context of this Bill? Is it being looked at separately with the European Union? What responses will be required of Europe in the event of a hard crash? I will leave it at that. Obviously Sinn Féin will critique and support some elements of the Bill. There will be amendments but we will leave that until later. We are not going to go into any criticisms or critiques now beyond what I have said. I look forward to the publication of the Bill.