Michael Harty (Clare, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The United Kingdom has decided that its future lies in diverging from the EU to strike a lone path and to leave a club rather than trying to fix the difficulties it has from within. However, how much divergence is the UK looking for and how quickly does it want to introduce that divergence? Ireland, on the other hand, has decided that its future lies in converging with the EU and becoming a more integral part of the EU. We all know we have differences over how EU laws are applied and interpreted, but Ireland has decided that its future is much more secure in converging with the EU and trying to sort those problems out internally.

What type of Brexit does the UK want? It is now realising it is difficult to untangle itself from an agreement it entered into 50 years ago. Unfortunately, the debate at the time of the Brexit referendum never addressed the core issues that are now the subject of debate. The Brexit referendum debate took place in very simplistic terms, but we now realise that some very complex issues need to be resolved.

On the length of any extension that the EU might offer, the UK missed two deadlines in March and October. We should offer the UK a prolonged extension for at least nine months, which would allow it to sort out its domestic political issues. It would allow it to debate the withdrawal agreement in a reasonable manner and not have it rushed through. It would allow it to hold an election, which will most likely be held in the next three months. It would allow it to hold a referendum if necessary. It should be given time and space and not just a short extension; it should be given a long extension.

Brexit is a process and not an end in itself. Comparing it to the Grand National, which has 30 fences, I think we are at the third fence. We have not reached Becher's Brook for the first time yet. We have not even started to look at the future relationship that the UK will have with the EU. It is a very long process and we need to give the UK the opportunity to have time to do it properly.

Brexit fatigue is setting in and leading to uncertainty over investment, economic activity and employment in Ireland. This fatigue is very dangerous. The EU is now having difficulty progressing its own issues; it is being distracted substantially by Brexit. An EU-US trade war is developing and Brexit is distracting Europe from dealing with such issues. We also need to examine how a common security policy will be developed should the UK leave the EU. When fatigue sets in, logical argument becomes much more difficult to make.

In County Clare, Molex has announced up to 500 job losses in the next 16 months and job losses have also been announced in Novartis in Cork. While I do not believe Brexit was responsible for those job losses, it will make it much more difficult to find replacement industries. That demonstrates the uncertainty over employment and investment.

We also have to consider the fragile peace on this island. None of this was considered in the debate held prior to the Brexit referendum. There has been an attempt to prevent a gradient across the Border concerning trade, tariffs, regulation, standards and citizens' rights. A gradient across the Border in these areas would put substantial pressure on peace and it is very substantial. All of these things feed into the discussion. We are concentrating a lot on trade and tariffs, but huge divergence is developing in the area of standards and regulation. This will affect the recognition of qualifications and standards throughout industry. There will also be increased political divergence. The gradient across the political divide will increase, with the result depending on what kind of Brexit occurs. It is extremely important that people in the United Kingdom who are now realising the difficulties presented by Brexit and seeing problems that they never explored before see that these difficulties and problems have to be dealt with in a very logical and calm manner. An extension of three months will be too short. We need to give the United Kingdom a prolonged extension to allow it to work through these difficulties and problems.

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