Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Concerns around the budgetary position post Brexit will have been raised even more loudly by those who saw the statement in the weekend's edition of The Sunday Timesby Boris Johnson, potentially the British Prime Minister, that he would withhold the £39 billion in outstanding British contributions to the EU budget for 2019 and 2020 unless the EU agreed what he called more favourable terms in Brexit. There are deep concerns, particularly regarding CAP, about the sustainability of the budgetary forecasts. Some might accuse Boris Johnson of simple bombast. That might prove to be the case but given that he is certainly one of the runners for the Prime Minister's position, this is a matter that we must take most seriously.

President Macron responded to this assertion - rather, a source close to him responded to Reuters - by saying that withholding Britain's contribution to the EU budget would amount to a sovereign debt default. President Macron has a habit of upping the ante in the debate with Britain. While Britain must be held to account and, as we all agree, this country cannot be the collateral damage in the Brexit debacle, there is a danger that we will get caught between anglophone and francophone bombast on some of these matters.

Given the new European Parliament term and the dynamic introduced by Brexit, now is the time to have a debate on the future of Europe and on protecting the democratic foundations and values of the Union. As democrats, however, we must open up to scrutiny the direction being taken by the European project. That would be a necessary and healthy thing to do.

How does the Taoiseach propose to promote that debate? I am not talking about a shouting match or a scenario in which those with critical views are denigrated as anti-European or negative. We need to have a grown-up, mature and democratic debate about the future direction of the European project.

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