Maurice Quinlivan (Limerick City, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The Minister will be well aware that exports worth €26 billion were destined for the other 26 countries in the EU, excluding Britain, last year. Getting these goods to the Continent could become an issue if a hard Brexit occurs. Currently, it takes approximately ten hours for a truck to travel from Dublin through Britain to Calais. If this route becomes unusable, due to restrictions, checks or massive queues at the Channel tunnel, the alternative direct route to Zeebrugge in Belgium can take 38 hours. Any additional time in transit will cost businesses money and every hour counts in the transport of perishable goods. What contingency plan has the Minister prepared to date in this regard? Has she explored using bonded warehousing in Britain and is that part of the negotiations? In addition, could IDA land be used to set up large warehousing depots in Ireland to replace similar ones the Irish companies currently use in Britain?

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