Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour) | Oireachtas source

We need clarity on this issue. I have tried on several occasions to nail this down in a crystal clear way, as have others. I made some comments at the Dundalk all-island dialogue, which was a really useful forum. The opportunity for open dialogue with Michel Barnier at lunch was a helpful initiative. It is a pity that unionists were not formally there. I met unionists there but they had to be there almost without declaring themselves and that is unfortunate. I realise the Taoiseach can do nothing about that.

I will explain the net point I want to make. There is genuine fear now. We have all indulged in giving space to constructive ambiguity. We have certainly learned this from the Northern peace talks. Sometimes it is important to find a form of words everyone can live with sufficient unto the day as long as everyone understands where the landing point is. My fear now is that there is a degree of duplicity. We will see what comes out of the UK Cabinet meeting in London today. I do not believe there is capacity within the May Government to actually bring her Cabinet to a position that squares the fudged circle of last December. I am referring to a position where we could have a situation of no border, or no mechanisms of a border or any sign of a border on the island of Ireland and yet Ireland and Northern Ireland would be in two different customs unions and Northern Ireland and the rest of the United Kingdom would be in a single customs union. There are no legal mechanisms that I can see to do that. Asking Britain to come up with them seems a fatuous expectation now because we have had more than a year and the first effort at it by those responsible has been slapped down by the European negotiators as completely unworkable.

It is important for the sake of clarity that the Taoiseach is open with the House about what he expects the point of arrival to be in July. What are the minimum terms that would be acceptable to the Taoiseach to allow discussions to go on to October? Certainly, there is no question of the Irish Border situation being folded into the post-October post-divorce discussions or into the long-term settlement discussions. This is something Michel Barnier underscored as well.

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