Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

If Commissioner Hogan made new comments today, I am not aware of them. I would prefer to see his comments in full and in context before commenting on them specifically.

The informal dinner was very much about the future of Europe, including future co-operation and integration. It touched on what is already in train as a result of the Bratislava process, as well as the Juncker and Macron speeches. It brought into focus in my mind the extent that although Brexit may be the most important thing happening in Europe to us, it is not necessarily the case for other people. In the Baltic states, they are much more interested in Russia and security matters while those along the Mediterranean are much more interested in migration. France and Germany have their own ideas and we cannot be disengaged on the future of Europe debate. Whereas we are primarily concerned with Brexit, we need to engage in the future of Europe debate as well and not allow it to pass us by.

On the Good Friday Agreement, Deputy Adams mentioned the Irish Government is co-guarantor of the agreement, and it is a role we accept and take very seriously. The Good Friday Agreement also states Northern Ireland is part of the United Kingdom but that does not mean one must like it. I am sure the Deputy accepts the Good Friday Agreement but he does not want that to continue to be the case. I accept the referendum provision in the Good Friday Agreement would allow unity by consent with a majority of one but I do not like it; it would be a bad idea to move from a constitutional settlement that has a decent amount of cross-party support, with 70% of people in Northern Ireland having voted for it, to a process with the support of one more person over those against it. That is the point I made and people understand that point.

Deputy Michael McGrath asked about sufficient progress with regard to the Brexit negotiations and the Government agrees with Mr. Michel Barnier's assessment that insufficient progress has been made across the three areas. As a result, we intend to support the draft Council conclusions, which we had a role in helping to write.

On the state aid matter, some initial work is being done, not just within Departments but through initial contact with the Commission about approving state aid for businesses that may be affected by Brexit. It is very much a work in progress and it is not possible to apply for state aid clearance to compensate people for something that has not happened yet. It is something that may well have to form part of our armoury if Brexit goes wrong.

With regard to President Macron's advocacy of an EU-wide digital tax or tax on digital companies, I expressed the view that it was a bad idea. A number of countries shared that view, including Sweden, Malta, Latvia, Romania, Cyprus, Luxembourg and the Czech Republic. The argument I made was that if we are going to introduce a digital tax, it should be done on an international basis and not just by the EU. If we were to impose such a tax within Europe, all we would do is hand the advantage to Japan, America and perhaps even the United Kingdom. As it leaves the EU, it would have the advantage of not having the tax applied. That is the approach we will be taking.

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