Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to set out the Government’s views on the Bill. First, I assure the Deputy of the Government’s support for what I interpret as the underlying spirit of this Bill, which is the need for frequent and fruitful engagement between the Government and the Oireachtas on all issues relating to Brexit. The Government recognises this in principle and, more importantly, in practice. Since the announcement of the referendum result in June 2016, the Government has kept both Houses of the Oireachtas fully informed on its approach to the Brexit negotiations. On 27 June 2016 three days after the referendum, the then Taoiseach Enda Kenny addressed the House, setting out the Government’s immediate reaction to the outcome in advance of travelling to Brussels to meet his EU counterparts. That day, in addition to apprising the House of the contingency planning already implemented by the Government and the steps envisaged in the following months, the Taoiseach emphasised that a cross-party approach would be valuable in the time ahead. He also spoke about being encouraged by the willingness of Members to use their influence through party affiliations in Europe to ensure Ireland’s position was well understood. I believe that has happened.

I acknowledge, some 18 months down the road, that this overriding unity of purpose continues to hold firm. While it would neither be natural nor healthy for us to agree on every detail every day - and we do not - it is true to say all Members of the House have played an important role in fostering the strong solidarity that we enjoy from our EU counterparts with respect to the unique implications that Brexit has for Ireland.

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This has not only included the direct engagement of the Members of this House with their counterparts throughout the EU and the UK, but also the valuable initiatives taken last year by the Oireachtas in inviting both Michel Barnier and Guy Verhofstadt in May and September, respectively. These contacts have served to reinforce the understanding at EU level of Ireland’s priorities, complementing the work being carried out by the Government through its intensive programme of bilateral engagement with the EU institutions and the EU 27.

From a parliamentary perspective, the value of this work has been clearly reflected in successive resolutions on Brexit adopted by the European Parliament which have expressed strong support for Ireland’s strategic goals, including with regard to protecting the gains of the peace process and the Good Friday Agreement in all its parts. In this respect, it is also important to acknowledge the important contributions made by our MEPs.

Within the context of my own role with special responsibility for the Government’s approach to Brexit, I am fully committed to maintaining and building further on this constructive approach. This not only includes my formal interaction with this House and with the Seanad but also my frequent informal engagement with my Opposition counterparts. In particular, I welcome the participation of Opposition spokespersons, including Deputy Cullinane of Sinn Féin and Deputy Lisa Chambers, at the Brexit stakeholder forum which has met on eight occasions since I convened it last September. This forum brings together key stakeholders with a view to providing regular updates on the progression of the negotiations as well as providing a platform for the interaction of academic, sectoral and EU expertise with a view to informing further the Government’s comprehensive response to Brexit. I was particularly pleased to host a special meeting of the forum to coincide with the recent visit of Michel Barnier to Ireland, providing a welcome opportunity for Members to engage directly with the EU’s lead negotiator.

As concerns Ireland’s overall strategic approach to the negotiations, the Government has also set out its position to this House frequently and clearly. In April 2017, shortly after the UK formally triggered the withdrawal process, the then Taoiseach addressed this House, outlining the steps already taken by the Government to ensure that Ireland’s concerns would be reflected in the EU position. In particular, he welcomed that the draft EU guidelines, which were subsequently adopted by the European Council, included a very strong acknowledgement of Ireland’s unique circumstances, the need to protect the peace process and the Good Friday Agreement, and our intention to maintain bilateral arrangements with the UK, like the common travel area.

The negotiations have continued to proceed under the strategic guidance of the European Council. In this respect, in the period since this Bill was first proposed in February 2017, the Taoiseach has addressed the Dáil in advance of, and after, the European Council meetings of March, April, June, October and December 2017 as well as March 2018, in which developments in the Brexit negotiations were addressed and reported as appropriate. Since this Bill was proposed in February 2017, both I and my colleague the Minister of State, Deputy McEntee, as well as our respective predecessors, have participated in 17 debates dedicated specifically to Brexit across both Houses of the Oireachtas and its committees. For my part, this most recently included my address to the Seanad on 1 May, during which I provided the House with an update on both the progress in negotiations and the Government’s domestic preparations for Brexit. I also note and welcome that Dáil statements on Brexit have been scheduled for 24 May, next week. Of course, such formal debates and statements take place over and above the intensive and dynamic engagement that is facilitated daily through Leaders' Questions and through parliamentary questions.

A key pillar of the Government’s response to Brexit has been to underline our firm commitment to EU membership and to work together with our EU 27 partners to build a positive future for the European Union. In this regard, I emphasise the importance of situating our approach to Brexit, as well as our domestic response, within the context of our wider EU engagement. I welcome that the Minister of State, Deputy McEntee, had the opportunity last week, on the occasion of Europe Day, to address both this House and the Seanad on Ireland’s wider EU priorities, as well as on the national citizens’ dialogue on the future of Europe, which has enabled the Government to engage with people of all ages and from all sectors to hear their views about the Union and its future direction.

I know that all of my colleagues across Government regularly engage with the Oireachtas on the EU related files that fall under their responsibility. For my part, I look forward to the opportunity to meet the Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence later this month. Of course, the fundamental purpose of all our collective efforts is to follow through on the mandate granted to us by the people of Ireland. With respect to EU issues, I believe that the results of the poll published last week to coincide with Europe Day were very heartening, reflecting a very high and growing level of support for Ireland’s membership of the EU. Overall levels of support for Ireland’s EU membership are at 92%. What is also notable, however, is the exceptionally low percentage of "don’t know" responses to key statements such as "Ireland should remain a part of the EU", where only 1% responded "don't know". In the question, "Given that the UK has voted to leave, should Ireland also leave the EU?", only 2% responded that they did not know. This is an issue on which people have clear views.

This obviously reflects the high profile of EU issues in Ireland, including with respect to Brexit. I also mention the very successful citizens' dialogue on the future of Europe, led again by the Minister of State, Deputy McEntee, which culminated in a well-attended event last week which coincided with Europe Day. It also speaks to the unprecedented level of scrutiny being afforded to these issues by the Oireachtas.

I have demonstrated that the Government’s engagement with the Oireachtas on Brexit and on wider EU issues is already extensive and dynamic. This raises a number of points of principle about the Bill proposed by the Deputy. First, it is clear that the Standing Orders of the Dáil more than adequately provide for frequent updates from the Government on Brexit, or indeed any other topic. Furthermore, it would be an unwanted precedent to amend legislation to take account of a topical issue that is temporary in nature. For example, the consequence of this in the context of Brexit would be that a further legislative Act would be required as soon as the negotiations are completed. I put it to the House that the valuable time that this legislation would take, to achieve objectives which are being met, might be more usefully dedicated to the negotiations at hand. This is also the case for Brexit officials in my Department and the Department of the Taoiseach who are working very long hours in pursuit of our national objectives in the negotiations. Given the cross-cutting nature of the challenges posed by Brexit, it is important to ensure that our engagement on Brexit does not become isolated from the overarching approach to Oireachtas scrutiny of EU issues that is set out in the European Union (Scrutiny) Act 2002.

To these points of principle, I also add some more technical concerns. As the negotiations are now well under way, section 5(2) as proposed by the Deputy has been overtaken by events and is effectively redundant. Furthermore, as the negotiations are proceeding on the basis of a mandate from the European Council, updates by the Taoiseach to the Dáil on the Government’s approach to the negotiations are provided for under the Standing Orders of this House.

This Bill also proposes that Government report quarterly to each House of the Oireachtas on developments in the negotiations. I point out to the Deputy that this is in no way excluded by the relevant provisions of the European Union (Scrutiny) Act 2002. Section 2(5) states, "Every Minister of the Government shall make a report to each House of the Oireachtas not less than twice yearly in relation to measures, proposed measures and other developments in relation to the European Communities and the European Union in relation to which he or she performs functions."

I have confined my comments thus far to the Bill proposed by the Deputy. Bearing in mind the issue that it addresses, however, it would be remiss of me to pass up this opportunity to comment more generally on the state of play of negotiations which are now at a critical juncture. As I informed this House on Tuesday during parliamentary questions, it is the objective of the negotiators that the full legal text of the withdrawal agreement, as well as a detailed political declaration on the framework for the future relationship, would be concluded by the October meeting of the European Council. To meet this objective, it is clear that we need to see significantly more progress on the outstanding withdrawal issues, including on the draft protocol on Ireland and Northern Ireland, ahead of the June European Council meeting.

This was the focus of my meeting with Michel Barnier, the EU’s chief negotiator on Brexit, last Monday when we took stock of the negotiations on the draft protocol. Mr Barnier has clearly said that without an agreed backstop, there can be no withdrawal agreement at all. The EU has also made it clear that nothing is agreed until everything is agreed and that negotiations can only progress as long as all commitments undertaken so far are respected in full.

This point was emphasised by Mr. Barnier and I during the meeting of the General Affairs Council later that day. While we have been clear at every stage that the backstop is only that, a fallback or insurance mechanism, and that it is our preference to resolve issues related to the border through a comprehensive future relationship between the EU and the UK, it is crucial that we have certainty in all scenarios on the commitments already made on Ireland and Northern Ireland. In this regard, Ireland enjoys the support and solidarity of all of our EU partners. It is, therefore, more important than ever that the UK engage in a more detailed and realistic way on the draft protocol, including the backstop, to which it has committed, in advance of the June European Council meeting.

I am happy to return at a later point to any issues of substance raised by Deputies during the course of this debate. In regard to the Bill, I reiterate the Government’s firm commitment to frequent and meaningful engagement with the Oireachtas on any issues of concern in regard to Brexit. The Government is, however, of the view that such engagement is already adequately provided for in the Standing Orders and in Statute, thus rendering this Bill unnecessary.

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