Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The Deputies recognise that between us, North and South contribute 15%, and 85% comes from the EU. There is absolutely no question about the Irish Government's commitment to this project. The issue continues to be that we need to have clarity about the EU's commitment and the UK's commitment. Both of these must be in place for us to give the type of assurances the Deputies require. This is what we are striving to achieve. The guarantee offered by the Chancellor is limited in its time, and it does not deal explicitly with what happens after the UK has left the European Union. This needs to be clarified to know exactly where these projects stand in respect of this contribution. We also need to know exactly what the EU commitment is in respect of cases where a member state has left and programmes are outstanding. We are absolutely committed to it, but the Deputies can see why it is imperative the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform achieves, through discussions North and South and with the UK and EU, the line of sight we need to give assurances to communities that these projects, which are so important, can be fulfilled. This is what he is working to achieve.

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