Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour) | Oireachtas source

Will the Taoiseach level with the Dáil as to what work is under way at present on the possibility of a hard border? I know it is something nobody wants, including the Taoiseach, but on the other hand we now have fairly continuous statements, ranging from the somewhat authoritative to the very authoritative, from figures such as the Secretary of State, Mr. Davis, on a technological type of border in particular. I imagine the Taoiseach must have officials examining what form these particular possibilities might take. I also noticed that yesterday, he made a hopeful reference that perhaps subsequent to the UK leaving there could be an agreement which would mirror the exact arrangements of now. That is what I understood the Taoiseach to say yesterday. This has been frequently described as magical thinking, namely, that everything can change but at the same time everything can stay the same. It would be interesting if the Taoiseach could advise us as to why he expects this because short of a British general election or a second Brexit referendum, there does not really seem to be a capacity to deliver, post the UK leaving, a mirror arrangement to what exists now.

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