Lisa Chambers (Mayo, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I have consistently asked about the financial supports that will be made available to the most vulnerable sectors.

I refer to agrifood and agriculture, tourism and haulage. I was particularly concerned last week to read the report published by Ernst & Young that in the event of a no-deal Brexit, rural communities could see themselves going into recession-type scenarios. Clearly, those communities will need direct supports. I refer also to reports from Fáilte Ireland that we could be facing about 10,000 job losses in the tourism sector. We know the impact on the agrifood sector would be in the region of 12,500 jobs. These jobs are predominantly in rural communities across the country. There is no alternative employment outside of these sectors in many areas. It is really important that there are targeted supports for them. I understand the Minister for Finance will be directing his budget towards Brexit. There are concerns that he has indicated he will need to borrow money in order to fund vulnerable sectors in the event of a no-deal Brexit. I am also concerned to see a report from the Central Bank today that a third of farms in this country could be at risk of no longer existing in the event of a no-deal Brexit. There are particular problems in agriculture that must be addressed. Even though some Brexit supports have been made available, just 11% of the combined €600 million in Brexit loan funds that have been made available has been drawn down or sanctioned. That leaves €533 million in Brexit loan funding that has not been touched. That is a problem.

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