Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

As the Minister is aware, there is great uncertainty and concern in Border communities, in the Cavan-Monaghan constituency I represent and in neighbouring counties, both north and south of the Border, regarding the adverse impact Brexit will have on our daily lives. There are considerable concerns regarding the impact on the local economy. As the Minister is aware and as we debated in the Chamber previously, the economy of Cavan-Monaghan is very heavily dependent in the agrifood sector, the construction products sector and the engineering sector. By definition, those sectors involve bulky products that need to be transported to ports and airports in order that they might be exported to the marketplace. We need to assist those companies to remain as competitive as possible by having the necessary road infrastructure upgraded. It is the only means to get the product from the area because we do not have a rail service. The road network is of critical importance to us.

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