Michael Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent) | Oireachtas source

There has been much talk and much worry but also much confusion as to what Brexit will actually mean and how it will impact on people's lives, and the negotiations have not really even started yet. The mists are starting to clear and we are now getting a better idea of what is involved. It seems clear to me at least that this is a marathon and not a sprint, so we need to be ready for the long haul and maintain our stamina so that Ireland keeps its focus until the very end. We now know what the European Union wants out of the negotiations with the publication of the guidelines. I congratulate the Government on its work to gain recognition from our European partners that there are some issues in respect of which Ireland simply is different and unique. We have started well. I am not a critic. I give credit where credit is due and I give credit for that.

We are lucky with the choice of the chief negotiator, who will appear before this House tomorrow. Mr. Barnier is a man of great capability and insight and he starts this process with a great deal of knowledge about Ireland. I led a delegation of the Joint Committee on European Union Affairs to Brussels to meet him in February. He was extremely open to engaging with us, to improving his understanding of the situation on the ground and to hearing creative solutions to the challenges. He is our negotiator. He will represent us, so we need to maintain that engagement beyond this week.

A number of committees have met different Ministers and senior civil servants. The committee I chair has met the Minister of State, Deputy Dara Murphy, a number of times as well as officials from the Departments of the Taoiseach and Foreign Affairs and Trade. All of them have impressed me by how seriously they are taking this and how diligently they are working on engaging with our partners, as are our MEPs. I compliment our MEPs. I do not care what parties they are from. We met them all when we were in Brussels and, as far as I am concerned, they are working diligently and very well. Be they representatives of Sinn Féin, Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael or whatever, they are working very well, and we must respect that work.

It is important for all our sakes that we spend time on the detail and on working to make sure that whatever the result, it is the best it can possibly be across all headings, but particularly for the peace process in Northern Ireland, all Irish citizens living in the United Kingdom, all our businesses, our farmers, be they big or small, and all our citizens who work within those sectors. We will find friends in this. Many member states share many of the concerns we have and we need to keep talking to them so that they understand us and we understand them. We all need to play our part. I try hard to meet at least one ambassador every week, which has been a very useful discipline. These men and women work hard at representing their countries and are willing to share that understanding and their concerns with me and the committee I represent. They are also willing to listen to, and better understand, the issues of Ireland. I started this engagement when I was fortunate enough to become Chairman of the committee. I like to do my work diligently. I set out to meet an ambassador every week because we can engage in an informal way and it is useful to build up a relationship with these people.

I suspect the actual process of the negotiations will be very technical, very boring and very detailed. However, every single line and issue will be important to us, so we need to play our part and remain interested, engaged and focused. We also need to do what we do best, which is to ensure the concerns of the citizens of Ireland and the citizens of our constituencies are brought into consideration. More than ever, we need to start talking about solutions. After this is all over and when the dust settles and we have to move on to a new approach and to a European Union of which the United Kingdom is not a member. We will still have to share an island with the United Kingdom and it will still be our nearest neighbour. We need to keep that in mind as we go through this. That relationship will be very important to us forever. These will be hard negotiations, but we all need to get through them in a friendly and professional manner. They may be hard, but we need not lose any friends over this.

See this speech in context