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

My previous answer referred to a no-deal scenario if the formal backstop and the withdrawal agreement and the Irish protocol linked to that were not ratified. Even in that scenario, there is an obligation on the British Government to work with Ireland and the EU. We cannot do this bilaterally. It has to involve the EU because this involves protecting the EU's customs union and Single Market. We cannot have a back door without checks. We have to ensure that we find a legally sound and sensible mechanism which prevents the need for physical Border infrastructure whether there is a deal or not. The only credible way to do that is through regulatory alignment, North and South, on the island of Ireland.

There will be a big obligation on the British Government to follow through on the commitments it signed up to in the withdrawal agreement, on which it is not now following through, but also on the commitments it made in December 2017 in the political declaration it made to people on this island.

The Irish Government is concerned about everybody in Northern Ireland, nationalist and unionist, who is stressed and concerned about what the future holds. We have to find a way forward that can protect the status quoas best we can. Having a constitutional debate on the future of Ireland right now, even bearing in mind the legitimate concerns of nationalists and unionists, makes the overall debate much more complicated.

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