David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

This omnibus Bill is the bare minimum needed in terms of Brexit planning. It is a steady state solution that does not plan adequately for the economic consequences of a hard crash-out of the EU by the UK. This is despite the fact that the Bill is being portrayed as a comprehensive response to the disruption Brexit will bring. However, it does not engage with the realities that many businesses and citizens will face. A no-deal Brexit would lead to 50,000 job losses in the first year. That is according to data from the State and all of the think tanks that have looked at the economic consequences of Brexit. Where are the provisions for this potential disaster? The majority of these job losses will be in the agrifood sector, yet the Bill is silent on this.

Brexit does not just affect businesses. It will affect communities and people, and any Brexit strategy worth its salt needs to reflect and address this reality. Sinn Féin believes in a dual strategy for dealing with a no-deal Brexit. The first is to mitigate its effects in the short term through State measures. The second is to overcome any disruption through medium to long-term investment in capital and social infrastructure.

In terms of the North, the Taoiseach has consistently stated that there will be no hardening of the Border and that our agreements must be protected.

We accept and acknowledge those statements from the Taoiseach. Instead of a hard border, people North and South should be given the opportunity to remove the Border once and for all. That is the democratic thing to do and it is also the right thing to do. Partition has failed; it has failed for our country. Brexit has shown that the British Parliament has not acted and will not act in the interests of Ireland. The people of the North voted to stay in the European Union and we want to ensure that the entire island does so. Therefore, it is not only prudent but imperative that the Government begins to plan to give effect to the promise of the Good Friday Agreement, to plan for a referendum and to plan to win that referendum.

Why does the Government close its mind to any planning on Irish unity? We call for a forum to be established to have a discussion on how we plan the transition to Irish unity and the Government says "No". We call for the Government to bring forward a White Paper to set out the stepping stones necessary to create a united Ireland and the Government says "No". It is part of the Good Friday Agreement. If the Government wants to deliver on all aspects of the Good Friday Agreement, it has to recognise the holding of a Border poll to unite this country is one part of that.

This omnibus Bill is being presented as what the State needs to do to protect itself in the event of a hard crash-out. However, the biggest issue facing the State and the island of Ireland if there is a hard crash-out is what happens at the Border. We do not accept all of those problems can be solved in an omnibus Bill but we do say the Government is closing its mind to the most obvious solution which is available to the Irish people, North and South, in the event of a hard crash-out, the application of World Trade Organization rules and the chaos for businesses, farmers and citizens either side of the Border. Why are the Government and Fianna Fáil afraid of Irish unity, afraid of having a debate on Irish unity and afraid even to plan for Irish unity without taking any practical steps? The Tánaiste can account for that for his party and Fianna Fáil can account for itself. Again, this is why we call on the Government to convene a forum to begin planning for Irish unity.

We met the Tánaiste and his colleagues to discuss the Bill. We will engage constructively to work with them to progress the Bill but also to strengthen it. We will be seeking clarification on some matters to ensure that the Bill is fit for purpose and adequately addresses the full range of issues thrown up by a no-deal Brexit. While we will not be seeking to delay any necessary legislation, we will not be giving the Government a blank cheque. We support most of the provisions of this Bill. Those Deputies who represent Border counties know that those provisions are necessary. They are the bare minimum but they are necessary to ensure continued access to services in health and education, and to ensure the all-island economy, all-island public transport and all-island energy are protected. All of that is absolutely necessary, which we accept.

While we do not have a quarrel with the Tánaiste or the Government in regard to many provisions of the Bill, we will certainly seek to expand on them. However, we do not believe the Bill does enough to invest in the Irish economy, to support small to medium size businesses or to make sure we protect ordinary citizens from the worst effects of Brexit. I have to point out that, in whatever form it takes, Brexit is going to bring about economic shocks and turbulence for Ireland. Obviously, that turbulence will be greater if there is a no-deal scenario. One of the quarrels we have with the Government is that, whatever form Brexit takes, businesses need to be supported, and it is not just in the case of a hard crash-out. There are many exporting businesses, many in the agrifood sector and many in other sectors of the economy who are struggling as we speak because of currency fluctuations. Yet, there are no hard, tangible, practical solutions, measures, investments or supports, financial or otherwise, in this Bill that would give any comfort to those businesses.

The Bill covers the Departments of Health, Business, Enterprise and Innovation, Communications, Climate Action and Environment, Education and Skills, Finance, Transport, Tourism and Sport, Employment Affairs and Social Protection, the Taoiseach and Justice and Equality. While the range of issues covered gives the impression that this is a comprehensive Bill, in reality, there is a simple and necessary theme and objective that runs through it. Overall, the purpose of the Bill is to allow certain Departments to treat Britain as if it is a treaty country in the event of a no-deal Brexit, and this applies to the North as well. It is to avoid Britain becoming, in certain aspects of Irish law and policy, a third country. We are going to spend five or six days discussing this Bill but, in essence, that is the purpose and objective of the Bill, and we support that. The one major exception is in regard to the Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment, to which I will return later.

In the area of health, for example, the Government proposes to amend the Health Act 1970 and the Health Act 2004 to enable healthcare arrangements to be maintained between Ireland and Britain, including reimbursement arrangements, in the case of a no-deal Brexit. The common travel area facilitates access to health services in both states, including access to emergency, routine and planned care, and the Bill seeks to put in place an appropriate legal framework in the Irish state to ensure the continuation of the common travel area arrangements in respect of healthcare. In terms of student supports, the Bill proposes to ensure continuity of the current commitments to maintaining the rights and privileges bestowed by the common travel area and eligibility for SUSI grants, even in the event of a no-deal Brexit. Again, in terms of continuity, we have a section on cross-Border bus services, an amendment to the Harbours Act and amendments to the Protection of Employees (Employers' Insolvency) Act 1984 in order to protect workers where an insolvency happens.

In all of this, there is nothing new being proposed, which, when we think about it, is quite strange as Brexit will be very new and is going to be durable and lasting for the people of this State, for businesses in this State and for citizens, not just in this State, but across the island. While it is important to ensure continuity, it is also important to ensure preparedness for the discontinuity Brexit brings with it. That is just common sense.

The one area where the omnibus Bill delves into this is in the section on business supports. The Government proposes a series of amendments to the Industrial Development Acts 1986 to 2014. These will give Enterprise Ireland the power to offer enhanced support to companies involved in research and development. It will also allow Enterprise Ireland to lend, participate in certain types of follow-on investments and ensure the organisation can apply for Government approval for individual investment amounts on loans in excess of €7.5 million. These measures differ from those originally proposed in the heads of Bill, especially around the need to extend state aid rules to normal EU levels.

When Deputy Quinlivan and I discussed this, we were taken aback, to say the least, that the Government does not already avail of the flexibility in regard to state aid rules in these areas. We find it truly shocking that the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation currently operates under state aid caps that are self-imposed by the State. These were in place during the economic crash, when businesses needed to be supported. They were still in place as many of those businesses, over the course of the last couple of years, were deeply affected by the uncertainty that Brexit presented due to the currency fluctuations to which those sectors were exposed. Why was that the case? What the Bill is missing and what the Government has not yet spelled out is where is the flexibility in regard to state aid rules. The EU needs to understand that the Irish economy is the most exposed as a consequence of Brexit. If there is a hard crash-out, it is going to be a disaster for the Irish economy. We all accept that and we all, as much as we can, want to do whatever we can to avoid a hard crash-out. While I still believe that is the most unlikely outcome, we could find ourselves in that position more by accident than by design. We need Europe to step up to the plate, not just in regard to giving us protections in regard to the backstop, which is necessary and for which we are thankful, but also in giving greater flexibility to the Government in the application of the fiscal rules and state aid rules in order for it to properly support, in very practical and tangible ways, the sectors of the economy that will be most exposed.

Last month, Sinn Féin launched a comprehensive Brexit contingency plan. Again, I was taken aback by the spokesperson for Fianna Fáil, who seems to think it is its job to hold Sinn Féin to account for the failures. Every single time we hear Fianna Fáil make a speech, it is to attack Sinn Féin. One would think we were responsible for Brexit failures and the problems in health and housing.

Fianna Fáil has produced no plan of its own. It has no Brexit contingency plan and was relying almost solely on the Government's plan. Yet, Fianna Fáil comes in to critique it. We have launched a Brexit contingency plan because we know we need to invest. There needs to be investment in capital spending, in supporting business and in ensuring commercial exporters are properly protected. We also need to invest in supporting all of the regions, some of which, such as the south east, will be deeply exposed as a consequence of Brexit.

Brexit will mean a structural change in the Irish economy. It going to be one of the biggest market distortions to impact on Irish businesses. The Government also needs to understand that Brexit will not be solved by market solutions alone. State intervention is needed. There needs to be State support and investment. Where is the investment? Where is the additional capital spending on ports, for example? Where is the additional capital spending on public transport? Where are the additional, hard, practical and tangible supports for businesses that need them? The Government is tinkering around the edges in this Bill with grants for research and development for companies. That is reverting to what current state aid rules allow anyway. There are, however, no real practical proposals to give businesses the supports necessary. We have engaged and worked with a number of different stakeholders. We met with IBEC, ISME and the British Irish Chamber of Commerce. All of those organisations are stating that what is needed is a loosening of state aid rules. They also state that what is missing from this Bill are practical proposals for businesses.

Those organisations also recognise the need to invest in the Irish economy. The only way to protect this economy from the worst effects of Brexit is to invest. There is no investment of additional capital spending in public transport. We also have ports that need to be supported. I gave the example previously of the ports in Rosslare and Waterford. There is also a need to invest in the ports in Cork, the Tánaiste's constituency, in Shannon Foynes and other parts of the country. That is necessary to ensure every region in this State, and on the island of Ireland, is in a position to have connectivity with Europe if there is a hard Brexit. There is nothing of substance in this Bill, however, that deals with any of those measures. Much more needs to be done to protect the Irish economy.

I return to the topic of the North and the Border. I fully accept we cannot deal with the real and mammoth challenge a no-deal Brexit will create for people who use services on either side of the Border and businesses that use and depend on the all-island economy. We represent the vast majority of nationalists in the North, despite what might be thought from listening to some of the voices from the Government and Fianna Fáil. They vote for us because we understand where they are at and we understand their needs.

We understand they are concerned about what will happen if there is a hard Brexit and what will then happen with the Border. We have no inkling from the Government about what will happen. We know the obvious. World Trade Organization rules will kick in and there will be disruption. In that scenario, everybody accepts there will be a hardening of the Border. The Government, however, is putting its fingers in its ears and pretending there is no problem. It is a real problem. The Government needs to spell out to people who live on both sides of the Border what will happen in that scenario. It is not good enough to state we can sort this out afterwards. People need to be given some sense as to what will happen.

It is reasonable and responsible for politicians on the island of Ireland to plan for the most obvious outcome in the event of a hard Brexit. That is a Border poll on Irish unity. Why is the Tánaiste so afraid to have that discussion? The Government is surely aware of the opinion polls which show that in the event of a hard Brexit a majority of people North and South would opt for the entire island remaining in the European Union as a unified country with no Border. That would be instead of the chaos of continued partition, where one part of the island would be inside the customs union and Single Market and the other part of the island would be outside. That is where the disruption and chaos will come from. There is an obvious way to end that disruption and chaos.

I will finish by stating we welcome the publication of this Bill. We also welcome the provisions which are necessary and will be helpful to citizens who use services. We accept we have to plan for the worst case scenario. We are hopeful. I acknowledge the Tánaiste recognised the efforts of the Opposition in helping get to the point where we had a withdrawal agreement, a protocol and an insurance policy for Ireland. That is what we want. We want to avoid any hardening of the Border. We wanted the withdrawal agreement to be passed. We want a solution that protects the interests of the people on this island. It does not suit anybody if we have a hard Brexit.

It does not suit people in the North, the South, in Britain or in Europe. We do, however, have to plan for every eventuality. We do not believe the Government has done that in respect of certain sectors of the Irish economy which need to be supported. The Government, therefore, needs to come up with more practical proposals for businesses and farmers. There have been repeated promises that such protections will be coming from Europe and that Europe will give a package of supports to the farming community and the agrifood sector. We have not seen them. They have not arrived. We have the Government’s Bill and none of it deals with those issues.

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