Seán Kyne (Galway West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Táim buíoch as an deis seo labhairt maidir leis an mBreatimeacht agus maidir leis an mbagairt atá ann don tír seo. Tá an Rialtas dóchasach nach mbeidh an Bille seo curtha i bhfeidhm ar chor ar bith agus go mbeidh sé fágtha ar an tseilf, mar a dúirt an Tánaiste. Caithfimid a bheith réidh do Bhreatimeacht gan socrú, áfach. Leis an mBille seo, beimid chomh réidh agus is féidir.

D'ardaigh an Teachta Connolly an pointe an tseachtain seo caite ag ócáid chruinniú cinn bhliana Chonradh na Gaeilge i mbaile Mhuineacháin nach raibh Údarás na Gaeltachta luaite sa Bhille. Tá an t-údarás ag comhoibriú i rith an ama le gníomhaireachtaí Stáit eile mar a bhaineann sé le cur chuige comhordaithe maidir leis an mBreatimeacht. Lena chos sin, tá an t-údarás ag obair as lámh a chéile le Fiontraíocht Éireann chun cinntiú go bhfuil na tacaíochtaí atá ar fáil do chomhlachtaí a thagann faoi scáth na heagraíochta sin ar fáil do chliaintchomhlachtaí de chuid an údaráis freisin.

Sa chomhthéacs sin, is fiú liom a lua go bhfuil meamram comhthuisceana i bhfeidhm le tamall de bhlianta anuas idir Údarás na Gaeltachta agus Fiontraíocht Éireann. Cinntíonn an meamram seo go bhfuil fáil ag comhlachtaí Gaeltachta ar scéimeanna éagsúla tacaíochta a chuireann Fiontraíocht Éireann ar fáil ar fud na tíre. De thoradh seo agus de thoradh an chomhoibrithe leanúnach idir an dá eagraíocht, beidh fáil ag cliaintchomhlachtaí Údarás na Gaeltachta ar na deiseanna agus na hacmhainní céanna a bheidh ar fáil do chomhlachtaí atá faoi scáth Fiontraíocht Éireann mar thoradh ar achtú an Bhille omnibus. Ní cáil dom a rá go bhfuil teagmháil rialta idir feidhmeannaigh an Roinn Cultúir, Oidhreachta agus Gaeltachta agus feidhmeannaigh an Roinn Gnó, Fiontar agus Nuálaíochta faoin ábhar seo agus go n-aithníonn an dá Roinn an gá go mbíonn Údarás na Gaeltachta agus Fiontraíocht Éireann in ann na tacaíochtaí céanna a thairiscint dá gcuid cliaintchomhlachtaí faoi seach. Táim sásta nach gá an t-údarás a lua sa Bhille seo.

The team, including officials in the Office of the Attorney General and the Office of the Parliamentary Counsel and the drafters who worked late nights and weekends over a period, that produced this Brexit omnibus Bill is to be commended. It must be difficult to prepare legislation that one hopes will not be enacted but we are here to do that in order to ensure that we are ready for the unthinkable. I acknowledge the Brexit team within the Government, including the Taoiseach, Tánaiste and the Minister of State with responsibility for European Affairs, Deputy McEntee, which has served the country well at a difficult time. I acknowledge the cross-party support demonstrated over a long number of years on matters relating to Brexit.

I acknowledge and thank all our EU colleagues who value the principle of collegiality. It was stated at a committee at Westminster recently that the treatment of Ireland as a small member state is clearly of much interest. The recognition of Ireland wanting to be a continued and strong member of the European Union is something all member states have shown an affinity for, which must be noted as well.

Protecting the concept of a strong Europe, a haven of peace and prosperity, is something that is very important. It is regrettable that in the United Kingdom in advance of the referendum for a long number of years and perhaps decades, certain aspects of the print media only told a negative story about the European Union and the European Economic Community before that. It is regrettable that it was all one-sided in being negative rather than showing the positives that the European Union has brought to the United Kingdom and across Europe.

I was previously a member and, for a period, Vice Chairman of the European affairs committee - I worked with Deputy Durkan on it - at a time when it considered whether a referendum would take place. We were not sure of the position prior to the 2015 UK election. The potential for a referendum depended on the outcome of that election. We thought about what would happen if the UK voted to leave but Scotland, Northern Ireland or Wales voted to stay. All these matters came to a head with the decision of the UK to exit the European Union. We regret that, although, as others have stated, we also respect the democratic decision that has been made.

We must remember that Brexit is not our policy, although it is having a major impact on this country in terms of uncertainty, consumer confidence and time spent preparing for it. We will have to deal with the extensive fallout from a no-deal Brexit. Even if a deal is secured, Brexit will mean that our position will never be as good as it is now. There is a possible impact on every sector of business and society, as reflected in the Bill, including security, healthcare, education and business. There is a serious implication for trading relationships that have delivered prosperity, security and an improved quality of life for millions of Europeans. The mechanics of trade have been threatened and the transport sector has been left scratching its head regarding the possible impact on and the implications for the landbridge to Europe through Britain. There will be extra costs and delays and there will be knock-on effects in respect of raw materials for manufacturing sector being delayed, with a resulting impact on our competitiveness and increased costs.

The possible impact of Brexit on agriculture is worrying and there has been a very serious drop in confidence in the beef sector in particular. The sector has always been difficult from a profit returns perspective but a no-deal Brexit would be an enormously serious blow to a vital sector, particularly in the west and some of its marginal land, but also nationwide. The prospects of tariffs damaging the competitiveness of Irish beef in our dominant market is almost unthinkable. Beef and suckler farmers are leaving the sector on a daily basis and a bad Brexit would only hasten that process. Beef and suckler farmers are concentrated on the west coast and the consequence of a collapse in the sector would leave a permanent scar on the communities in those areas. The experience is that once farmers leave the sector, it is difficult to get them back.

There would be considerable impacts down the line on jobs in the meat industry and service sector and there would be a disproportionate negative effect. These jobs are located in rural areas and it would be very difficult to replace them. If we lose the suckler herd on which the quality beef sector is based, it will be very difficult to replace it. I do not wish to labour the point but rural Ireland is very vulnerable to trade difficulties in all sectors, North and South, and in Britain. Local engineering and manufacturing companies would as a first natural step to export to Northern Ireland and Britain so they are vulnerable to sudden change. Even currency fluctuations during the Brexit process have brought hardship to many of those. These are often family-owned small and medium enterprises whose existence is crucial to their localities and any difficulty that arises will have a disproportionate effect on them.

I pay tribute to the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation on the work done and resources provided to guard against the possible worst effects of Brexit. The work and preparation done on this Bill demonstrates the broad depth of issues at stake and the responses that the Government have provided to mitigate against the impact of a hard Brexit, which I hope we will not see. I acknowledge the cross-party support that has been indicated for the Bill, which I hope to see pass Committee and Report Stages next week.

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