Charles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The most pressing and challenging issues are those specified in the Bill, namely, extradition, immigration and international protection. I have to concede that in a no-deal, crash-out scenario, there will be a number of potential problems and the entire regime might be regarded as less than satisfactory. The object of the exercise on the part of Government is to ensure our contingencies are in place, in so far as they can be. Ultimately, the certainty will perhaps only be evident when agreement is reached between the EU and the UK in respect of the future relationship arrangements. While the EU has been the negotiating party, there were certain areas of our relationship with the UK that we needed to discuss and we were discussing. Arising out of these discussions, we have set forward the proposals in the legislation. Nonetheless, there have been and will continue to be instances where we have to fall back on older legislation that is less modern and potentially more challenging. What we are putting forward in the Bill deals with the urgent and important areas which are likely to prove immediately challenging. As time passes, we will continue our discussions under the umbrella of the EU. Our objectives and those of the UK are broadly similar, namely, ensuring the protection of our people and ensuring the legal framework that existed between our two countries across a range of issues, both criminal and civil, will continue, notwithstanding the potential withdrawal of the UK from any of the EU instruments which have proved very beneficial in terms of our relationship.