Ms Julie Sinnamon:

I thank the Chairman and the committee for the opportunity to talk with them today. Certainly for the past three and a half years we have spent a lot of time and effort, and Mr. O'Neill is specifically managing the Brexit unit in working with companies on this. Between Brexit and Covid coming together, the past year has probably been the most challenging of times for Irish companies. We have seen, however, a resilience in the client base in being able to respond to it. There is certainly a strong commitment to continuing to grow in the UK market but the spread of markets is very important. There has been success in growing exports out of the UK, which is very important. This is about not walking from the UK but also about growing exports outside it to have a more balanced portfolio. I believe this is very important going forward. The UK is a very strong market with more than 60.5 million consumers. Very strong relationships have been built between the Irish supply base and the UK market. We also see continued opportunity in that market. The next year will tell a lot in solving the issues for companies and the full implementation of all the barriers. We are going into a new trading relationship with the UK but this does not mean we need to walk from the market. We will continue to develop and prosper in it.