Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I have no doubt that, following a number of business surveys that have been cited recently, there is a sentiment among businesses indicating both a lack of preparedness for Brexit and a hard Brexit. The message is coming from businesses that they feel insufficiently prepared. The Minister and her Department have to share some of the culpability over the lack of preparedness among businesses. It is concerning when one compares the size of the Brexit unit in the Minister's Department, which has up to four staff, with that in the United Kingdom, where there is a Brexit Department with a staff of 335 officials.

Will the Minister seriously consider creating an enterprise stabilisation fund? This was done in 2008 when the crisis hit this country and it helped business. Will the Minister consider seriously and consult her Cabinet colleagues on resourcing an enterprise stabilisation fund?

With regard to the state aid rules, the Minister indicated to me previously by way of replies to parliamentary questions that she attended a number of meetings of the EU Competitiveness Council. She now states she has attended three out of three meetings and that the matter did not come up on the agenda. We really need to be pushing it. I have raised this previously. If the matter is not on the agenda, why can it not be put on it? I presume there is an "any other business" item on the agenda, just as there is in any normal meetings across the world. Could it not be raised under that heading if it is not on the formal agenda? Our current position on state aid rules is a serious issue and an impediment to dealing with Brexit.

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