Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour) | Oireachtas source

For some time now, the Taoiseach has been exhorting us all to be very careful in what we say and the language we use about the ongoing discussions in the British Parliament, yet today he gratuitously had a go at the British Labour Party, the votes of which will be pivotal in deciding the outcome. I put it down to a lack of experience, but it was very unhelpful. The British Labour Party has announced that in the indicative votes it will be whipping its Members to support the holding of a second referendum. That is in Ireland's interests in that it could help to reverse the situation. For Prime Minister May's deal to be passed, it will need a substantial number of Labour Party Member votes. The Taoiseach's reference to anti-Semitism and so on runs counter to the sensitivities he implores everybody else to have regard to in the ongoing discussions happening in the United Kingdom. It seems that there are parallel processes. For instance, there is the preferendum in the multi-choice ballot Members will have. This morning I asked a question of the Tánaiste who indicated to me that, as far as he was aware, the Theresa May deal was not one of the options being put; therefore, there will be a twin-track approach, whereby the Prime Minister will try to build support for her deal separate from it. As I said, if there is not to be a second referendum, in my judgment, it would be a better outcome for us. The most recent opinion poll yesterday showed that 54% of people in the United Kingdom - it is not a huge majority, but it is still a majority - would like to remain part of the European Union. We need to be careful to ensure we will not allow a situation to occur such that there will be a fall-out in a disorderly way. The Tánaiste also promised this morning to brief privately the parties represented in this House on preparations. Will that happen?

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