Michael Collins (Cork South West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

With Brexit approaching, it will no doubt have important consequences for the Irish economy. It is vital that this Government navigates its way through these uncertain waters with its head well screwed on. We are all in the same boat, and it is so important that we work together and listen to the concerns of the people.

Brexit poses a number of major challenges for healthcare, especially our collaboration between Ireland and the UK and how patients from the Republic can access health services in the UK, including in Northern Ireland, and vice versa. My main concern is for the cross-Border directive. So far, Deputy Danny Healy-Rae and myself have carried 26 busses to Belfast for cataract procedures. Statistics released recently showed that 150 people travelled to the North in 2015, 1,025 in 2016, 2,011 in 2017 and up to the first four months of 2018, 1,422 had travelled at a cost of €2.79 million. That shows that there has been an explosion of people going to the North for procedures and patients receiving care in Northern Ireland as part of the cross-Border directive. People from the Republic received high-tech treatment in the UK under the treatment abroad scheme. While we have been give some reassurances, which are very welcome, that the cross-Border directive will remain accessible for people travelling from the Republic to Northern Ireland and the UK, I still seek more clarity on this issue. A new basis will have to be agreed to support ongoing and future collaboration in health services and in ensuring timely and seamless access to treatments for patients.

We also need more clarity on other cross-Border service level agreements that exist as a result of collaboration and capital investment from both the Republic and Northern Ireland. These include the provision of all-island paediatric cardiac surgery services for children with congenital heart disease at Our Lady’s Children’s Hospital, Crumlin in Dublin. It is vitally important that during the Brexit negotiations, we remain vigilant that these agreements are not threatened. There are also patients going from Donegal to Derry for cancer treatment, and it is very important that this continues. It is not just the cross-Border directive; other agreements between the UK and the Irish Government need to be protected going forward.

On medical professionals such as doctors, we will need a bilateral agreement between Ireland and the UK to facilitate Irish graduates who complete their postgraduate training or spend a period of time in the UK before returning to Ireland. It is vital that there will be continued mutual recognition of qualifications between Ireland and the UK as there are currently almost 3,200 doctors registered with the General Medical Council in the UK who received their primary medical degree in Ireland, and 742 doctors registered with the Medical Council in Ireland who received their primary medical degree in the UK.

We need to pay particular attention to the agricultural sector. Brexit is already causing chaos to the Irish agricultural industry. As I mentioned today in a question, at the very mention of Brexit, factories lowered the price of cattle about two years ago. It has not recovered since and many beef farmers' livelihoods are being threatened seriously. The uncertainty around Brexit is being felt hard by farmers on the ground as I have said. Beef prices have taken a serious hit and prices for finished cattle are down by €100 to €150 per head. The UK is Ireland’s largest market for food and drink, with 40% of our food exports destined for the UK. A reduction in access to the UK market would have a very negative impact on the Irish beef sector and potentially on the overall EU beef market.

The 270,000 tonnes of Irish beef exports to the UK represent almost 10% of the intra-EU beef trade. The displacement of these exports would, therefore, have a serious effect on the overall EU market. I was disappointed with the Taoiseach's reply to my question earlier today on looking at other markets. The beef sector is on its knees. Last weekend, I attended a beef forum meeting in Bantry along with more than 300 other people. They are not making up stories. This is the reality as it hits. They are worried about the potential loss of the UK market and the price they will get for their cattle. Earlier today, I asked the Taoiseach to consider opening the embassy in Tehran because the Iranians have indicated they would consider buying Irish beef if something like this happens. He more or less dismissed it. That does not look as though he is fighting to deal with our worries about losing the British market. Last Thursday, we read in the Irish Independentabout the potential loss of much of the UK market. How will this be offset? What are the thoughts of the Minister and the Government on this?

The Irish farming and food sectors have a higher dependence on the UK market compared to other sectors in Ireland, therefore making them the most exposed sectors to any negative economic impact of the UK's Brexit decision. We really need to look at our diary industry. Ireland is the only significant exporter of cheddar cheese to the UK market and the UK market is the only market of significance for Irish cheddar. We export 78,000 tonnes of cheddar cheese, most of which comes from Carbery in Ballineen in my constituency. The people there have done excellent work over the years. At present, they are doing much work to try to counteract what could be a very negative Brexit. It is also very worrying for the many dairy farmers who supply them. Irish exports account for 82% of all cheddar cheese imported by the UK. It is vital that we have tariff-free access to the UK market.

We need to pay serious heed to the effects of Brexit on EU funding for farmers.The UK is an important contributor to the overall EU budget, providing 10.5% of funding. In turn, some 37% of the overall EU budget is directed towards the Common Agricultural Policy. Brexit is likely to have a significant negative effect on future spending on the CAP, particularly from 2021 onwards. The EU will need to provide substantial financial support for Irish agriculture or many of our rural family farms will not survive.

I also have a big concern about employment levels. The report by Copenhagen Economics for the Government estimates that the UK’s departure from the European Union will cause the value of output from key parts of the agrifood sector to fall between 10% and 20% by 2030. The agrifood sector employs 175,000 people and this could mean 17,000 fewer jobs, or more than 30,000 fewer jobs were there to be a hard Brexit.

We cannot forget about our ports and fishermen and the effect Brexit will have on them. In my constituency we have ports such as Bantry Bay, Castletownbere, Union Hall and Kinsale. Their futures need to be secured. I plead with the Government to support these ports through the uncertain times that lie ahead with Brexit on the horizon. Recent days and weeks have shown us that we are in very uncertain times regarding Brexit, which is especially the case for many of our industries, including fisheries. When Ireland first joined the EU, fishermen got a shockingly bad deal in the negotiations for membership. We got small and unfair access to European waters. People can now install an app on their phones that will allow them to see the number of foreign vessels in Irish waters. It is astonishing. With the introduction of fish quotas, Irish fishermen were at a disadvantage from the start. Big European factory ships have blown our Irish fishing fleet out of the water. When I see on the app so many foreign vessels on our shoreline it is quite scary, to be quite honest. Our fishermen have been left high and dry. They play a major part in our country but there are very few debates on their livelihoods. They have suffered for years under successive Irish Governments, which have failed to properly represent them in various quota negotiations in Europe. Now, with Brexit, the fishing industry is at another crossroads and we need the Government to fight a strong case in Europe on behalf of fishermen. Our fishermen and fisherwomen need to be protected in their own waters. We cannot allow other European fleets to flood our waters post Brexit. The quotas of Irish fishermen must be protected.

I had a fight with the Minister about applying for a bluefin tuna quota. That request was continually refused. Now I am grateful to see he has applied for a bluefin tuna quota and I hope it will be a great help to the fishing industry. It should not be a fight. We have to look at other markets if things go badly and this is one way to help. It has now been agreed but it took a hell of an argument.

We need to protect all our export markets. It is vital to maintain strong and competitive transport links with the rest of the EU in order to secure Ireland’s economic future. Two thirds of Irish exporters use the UK landbridge to access Europe. Brexit will have a huge effect on Ireland’s ability to use this route for exports. We need to look at negotiating transport routes.

I have a big concern about driver licences. In the event of a no-deal Brexit, the driver licence of a UK licence holder living in Ireland will not be recognised. What will happen to Irish drivers in the UK? Will they be in the same situation with regard to an Irish driver licence? This area needs clarity. I have been contacted by quite a number of people about it.

I have also been contacted by people worried about their citizenship and the cost of all this. It is a very difficult time for people. Thousands of people living here receive pensions and other payments from Britain, while Ireland also pays people who live in the UK. I welcome the announcement that the Irish and British Governments have guaranteed the continued payment of State pensions, child benefit and other social welfare payments in the event of the UK crashing out of the EU without a deal. We need to ensure the future of Irish citizens living in the UK and vice versa.This is needs to be addressed urgently. No Irish citizen living in the UK should have to live in fear. We also need to ensure there will be freedom of movement between here and the UK. We need to look what will happen to Irish students studying in UK colleges.

My fear regarding Brexit lies with the people of rural Ireland and the negative effect it will have on rural Ireland. In recent years, I have seen rural Ireland wither before my very eyes. In my constituency, and I presume it is the same for other Deputies, I have seen the closure of schools, pubs, shops, butchers, cafes, restaurants, hairdressers, petrol stations and insurance offices. We have also seen the closure of post offices. My fear is what will happen to rural Ireland when the effects of Brexit kick in.

The Irish Hotels Federation has reported that nine out of ten hoteliers in Ireland are concerned about the impact of Brexit on their businesses. I come from a beautiful part of west Cork where we are lucky to have such a high standard of hotels, from the Barleycove Beach Hotel in Goleen to Actons in Kinsale and every hotel in between. The list of hotels is endless but one thing they all have in common is that they are highly dependent on tourism, in many cases from the UK. There is no doubt that a disruptive Brexit could have serious economic repercussions that would be felt directly by the tourism sector given its heavy reliance on the UK market. The tourism sector is already suffering as a direct result of the Government’s increase in VAT from 9% to 13.5%. Our tourism businesses have much to deal with, including the Brexit storm that is on the way, the increasing cost of business, such as insurance hikes, a slowdown in European growth and the increase in the VAT rate. Having spoken to hotel owners I know they are very concerned about the Government's negative change in approach to tourism and the lack of recognition of the important role tourism plays in our economic growth.

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