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

The European Council meets this week at a time when the twin crises of the pandemic and Brexit call for a refocusing on what is required to meet these seismic challenges and to deliver solutions based on what has worked successfully in the recent past, that is, partnership, co-operation and solidarity.

There is massive frustration and disappointment in Ireland and across the European Union at how the European Commission has handled the procurement and supply of Covid-19 vaccines. The reality is that the EU has little experience of procurement. It is not an EU competency and procurement is not carried out through the EU for other vaccines. The European Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen, has acknowledged mistakes around the speed of procurement, which arguably member states might not have made if left to their own devices. These mistakes have had consequences, in particular for smaller member states such as Ireland where supplies are nowhere near where they need to be, and where the initial stages of the vaccine roll-out are dangerously slow.

In summary, there has been a failure thus far to deliver vaccines at scale or at pace. The European Union must acknowledge and take responsibility for its mistakes, but it is the Government that is ultimately responsible for protecting the health of the Irish people. The roll-out here has been marked by many problems. For example, we still do not have detail on staffing for mass vaccination centres and there is no plan for preventing further delays to healthcare from redeployments that might be necessary for these centres. We still have problems with deliveries of vaccine to GPs. Missed deliveries and late deliveries with no warning are persistent and some GPs have received few or no vaccines. Some have received double deliveries while others have received a box of leaflets instead of vaccines. Vulnerable groups such as family carers, to mention one, are still left behind in the order of priority. I raised that already this morning. None of this is good enough.

The Government needs to look seriously at avenues outside of the EU system to maximise supply, accelerate the stuttering roll-out and give health teams and professionals the very best chance at getting the job done. Solidarity across EU member states is important, but we should remember that other states such as Germany and Denmark are now doing their own side deals and Ireland needs to seek out every opportunity. The importance of having a certain supply of vaccines is even further underscored when one considers that further delays can be caused by unforeseen circumstances such as we saw with the recent suspension of the AstraZeneca vaccine. The people of the EU and Ireland need certainty and regularity of supply. I note that the European Medicines Agency, EMA, is reviewing the Russian Sputnik V vaccine with the hope of approving it for use in the European Union. That is very important work. It is important that the EU continues to build a portfolio of safe vaccines from a wide range of sources in a way that enhances supplies in a fair way across member states.

Procurement issues have slowed us down, so the focus now must be on maximising production and the EU must take leadership in the global vaccination effort. We remember the mantra that nobody is safe until we are all safe. It is not enough for the Government to sit back and point a finger at the EU, it is essential that we play an energetic role in positively contributing to the improvement of the EU strategy. Unless our vaccination programme is improved dramatically then the virus will stay ahead of us and the reopening of society, the economy and people's lives will remain on hold indefinitely. That is unacceptable given the hard road people have travelled since the beginning of the pandemic.

Although Brexit is not on the clár for the upcoming Council meeting, I have no doubt the recent developments may be discussed informally by EU leaders. Five years after Britain's vote to leave the EU - a decision resoundingly rejected by the people of the North of Ireland - the economic and political dangers have converged to present us with the true scale of what Brexit really means for Ireland. The continuing campaign to undermine the Irish protocol is ill-conceived to say the very least and dangerous. Attacks on the protocol, including the DUP's legal challenge, have been damaging and disruptive to the all-island effort to minimise the impact of Brexit. These attacks are not in the best interests of workers, families and businesses. They are dangerous ploys designed to divide and distract from the calamity of Brexit. The decisions taken by the British Government at the start of March were also unhelpful. At February's meeting of the joint committee, Michael Gove and Maroš Šefčovič reaffirmed support for the Irish protocol and the need to work together to deal with the issues that arise. Incredibly, one week later the British Government went on a solo run, taking unilateral action in departing from the rules of the protocol and measures agreed by both sides. This was completely unnecessary and undermined the work and the role of the joint committee. Putting the joint committee on a collision course with the EU is short-sighted and counterproductive. The joint committee was put in place for a reason and it needs to work.

In the immediate aftermath of these events, I met dozens of members of the diplomatic corps in Dublin and London regarding the challenges Ireland now faces arising from Brexit and the fact we are now picking up the pieces of a Tory Brexit that is bad for Ireland. It is clear to me that EU member states are watching events closely, that they understand why the Irish protocol is necessary and, most importantly, that they are resolute in supporting its implementation. The protocol is vital for us. It protects our all-island economy, it defends the Good Friday Agreement and it prevents the reintroduction of a hard border on our island. It is right there has been near universal condemnation of attempts to undermine that protocol and that those voices of condemnation have been heard at home and internationally. I welcome the statement issued jointly by US President Joe Biden and the Irish Government on St. Patrick's Day, which called for the good faith implementation of international agreements designed to address the unique circumstances of the island of Ireland and which sought to underscore the importance of preserving the hard-won gains of the peace process.

Instead of attacking the protocol, those who championed the Tory Brexit should own their decisions, turn away from narrow ideological attacks and join the good faith effort of making the protocol work for the benefit of everyone. We must remember that these attempts to undermine the protocol are happening at a time of immense challenge for business and trade across the island, challenges brought on mainly by the disruptive approach taken by the British Government in putting in place its new customs regime.

To face these challenges, the Government must be proactive and strategic in its response. It must respond to the repeated calls from traders to update systems throughout the trading channel to avoid adding to the disruption. It must also invest in key infrastructure to take advantage of the opportunities for the all-island economy that are becoming all the more apparent in the chaos of Brexit. This is something recognised by IBEC in its submission to the national development plan and by EU Vice-President Maroš Šefčovič when he pointed to the potential of building capacity at Rosslare Europort as an alternative to the British land bridge for Irish companies trading to the Continent.

Trade with Britain will remain crucially important, but there is now a need to enhance the strategy for Irish companies to diversify into new international markets to offset the disruption. If Ireland is to respond successfully to the challenge of Brexit, there can be no question of a reduction in our allocation of the EU Brexit adjustment fund. That is something the Government must impress on our EU partners at the Council meeting.

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