Mr. Ciarán Cuffe:

A number of issues were raised by the Senators. Before addressing them, I will pull back a little and say that the mood among member states shows they are starting to get a bit annoyed. The EU cannot really let trading partners get away with not implementing previously agreed conditions. If the UK were allowed not to implement what it has agreed to implement, other third countries would start demanding to do the same. There is a meeting tomorrow of the EU-UK joint committee, chaired by Maroš Šefovi, and I hope some of the loose ends will be tied up there. Senator Byrne mentioned the steel issue and the different VAT rates, which are still a real concern. There are other issues as well. In addition, we are approaching the start of the marching season in Northern Ireland and we do not know to whom Mr. Poots will be appealing over the next few weeks.

I would like to focus on some hard facts regarding the Brexit adjustment reserve. The eligibility period is very specific, being from 1 July last year to 31 December next year. This means member states have two and half years in which to prove they suffered losses as a result of Brexit. The first funding tranche of €4 billion will be allocated in 2021, with the remaining €1 billion to be allocated in 2024. A particular issue for the Government is that a lot of money was spent on getting Dublin Port ready for Brexit but, because it was spent before 1 July last year, it does not qualify under the Brexit funding. It is important to go into the detail of that. There is quite a large amount of detailed guidance from the European Commission. I have just tweeted the link to it, if members want to have a read of it. It is easy enough to drill down through it and it may be of interest and use in respect of the fisheries allocation, for instance, which will make up a large part of the money that is allocated.

Senator O'Reilly had some more detailed questions about the veterinary side of things. I do not sit on the agriculture committee so I do not have the detail on that.

Looking at it from the Brussels side, the EU wants to help Ireland in dealing with the very real challenges we have had with Brexit. The money is there. It will be allocated in a very above board way depending on the losses that have been incurred. They will have to be crystal clear in their fiscal transparency. The EU is there to help us. Michel Barnier may have moved to a different stage but the Commission's view is that it will continue to help Ireland where we need it.