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

I know that the most recent round of negotiations concluded last Saturday and, unfortunately, the view of Michel Barnier, our chief negotiator, is that while progress has been made again in some minor areas, there is still a way to go. I agree with the Deputy that this is concerning and that is why it is important that we move this legislation forward as quickly as possible. This legislation will not only support business. As the Deputy rightly said, it will also put measures in place to protect people and ensure that the changes which happen will be as minimal as possible. However, we cannot prevent all kinds of change from happening and we will have to deal with that if we find ourselves in a no-deal scenario.

One of the biggest concerns people have - and the Deputy has outlined a number of scenarios - is that there will be continued co-operation between the Garda and the PSNI and that there will be an ability to continue to share information and intelligence where needed. Data-sharing is currently governed across the EU by the law enforcement directive and in Ireland by the Data Protection Act 2018. National security information is outside of the scope of these matters but in the absence of an alternative agreement between the EU and the UK, the fallback option is to create and retain records of every data transfer. That would have to be done between Ireland and the UK in the form of a bilateral agreement. It is not the direction we want to go in and we would prefer if there was an agreement on an EU-wide basis but that is something that we have to look at, given the huge level of co-operation that has happened between the Garda and the PSNI and how that relationship has evolved in recent years.

I accept what the Deputy says about Irish citizenship. This is something that has come across my desk in the short time I have been in my new post. I accept that it is a barrier for some people and it is something I previously stated that we will examine.

It is challenging to do so in the current context, but I understand that it is even more challenging for the people looking to become citizens and the cost is potentially a barrier for them. I will take the Deputy's point on board.