Maurice Quinlivan (Limerick City, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

People might think from the response we have just heard that the Minister and the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation are doing enough, but I do not believe that is the case. Brexit has the potential to be the biggest economic disaster to hit the North and the South of Ireland for many generations. We need to meet the challenges that will arise in that frightening context. The provision of €3 million is welcome, as is the allocation of an additional 39 staff to Enterprise Ireland and an additional nine staff to IDA Ireland. We now know what type of Brexit we are facing. We no longer have to wait for the UK to trigger Article 50. Theresa May has made it crystal clear that she is going for a hard Brexit. The Minister will be aware of Ms Patricia King's comments at last week's conference in Carrick-on-Shannon. She said that Irish jobs must not be lost because of a UK decision. I think we need additional funding to help people in the markets that will be affected by that decision. Professor Kevin O'Rourke, who is a professor or economics at Oxford University, recently suggested that the Government should allocate €25 million for a market diversification and product innovation strategy in support of Irish food and drink companies that will have to try to replace UK exports with EU exports and in compensation for the hit caused by Brexit. His analysis of the food and drink sector provides an insight into how the paltry expenditure of €3 million is nowhere near the level of funding needed to meet the challenge of Brexit.

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