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

I thank the Deputy. As the House knows, Prime Minister May met with President Juncker in Strasbourg last night. They announced at a joint press conference that they had agreed on a number of things - an interpretive instrument on the withdrawal agreement that has legal effect, and a joint statement on the political declaration on the future relationship between the EU and the UK. Those documents were published last night. The documents are complementary to the withdrawal agreement and the political declaration, and aim to provide an additional layer of interpretation, clarification and reassurance to the United Kingdom ahead of the vote in Parliament this evening. We are also aware that the UK Government has published a unilateral declaration alongside the two joint documents that were agreed.

The UK asked for further legal clarity on how the backstop would effectively not be indefinite. We were very glad to support providing that clarity yesterday evening. The further texts that were agreed last night provide additional clarity, reassurance and guarantees that were sought by some in Westminster to eliminate doubts and fears, however unreal they may have been, that the goal of the EU, or of Ireland for that matter, was to trap the UK in a backstop indefinitely. This has never been the case and it is still not the case. The reason we were happy to support the wording last night was to try to provide more reassurance in a very real way that puts a legal obligation on the EU to put processes in place that are convincing and that we will work in good faith with the United Kingdom to ensure that the backstop is never used and that if it is ever triggered that it will be temporary. For the first time, there is a clear commitment in a legal document as to how that will be done and the timeframes for it. Also, if one side is not acting in good faith and if there are not best endeavours - in other words, if the EU decides to simply allow the backstop to be the only serious consideration - the UK can trigger a mechanism through arbitration that would have consequences that could potentially lead to the suspension of the use of the backstop.

What is being presented to Westminster this evening is different from the last meaningful vote. That being said, from an Irish perspective the text and content of the withdrawal agreement has not changed. What has changed is the extra language which commits the EU and the UK in a legal document to clear procedures ensuring they work together to try to avoid using the backstop and to ensure that it is temporary if it is ever required. We will have to wait and see, and give the British Parliament the time and space to consider the documents that were signed off on last night. Like others, I have been listening closely to the debate in London so far today.

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