Timmy Dooley (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I, too, want to be associated with the congratulations to the Commissioner and wish her well at this difficult time.

If the UK continues to refuse the alignment with the animal and plant standards, the SPS standards that we have talked about, has any consideration been given to a plan B at EU level? The Commissioner might share her thoughts on a proposal that emanated yesterday or the day before from the Minister, Deputy Coveney, where he suggested that it might be possible to find a middle ground with some kind of independent monitoring. What is the Commissioner's view on that or has the College of Commissioners had any thoughts there?

It is clear that the relationship between Šefovi and Lord Frost is, at best, strained. Is there any role for Michel Barnier to resume some kind of an EU negotiating position? There is a lot of concern that Lord Frost might trigger Article 16 on checks on the basis of societal difficulties. While that at one time might have seemed somewhat remote, friends of mine in the North are telling me that they have never seen so many Union Jacks flying so early in the year and it clearly signals that there are societal difficulties there. Has the Commissioner any thoughts or views on that? I will leave it at that for the moment.