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

I too would like to welcome the decision to grant Ukraine EU candidate status. I hope that matter is ratified as outlined by the Taoiseach.

The meeting of the European Council this week occurs against the backdrop of the British Government's full frontal attack on the Irish protocol and the Good Friday Agreement. Boris Johnson's reckless decision to push ahead with legislation to override the protocol is an intentional breach of European and international law. It is an affront to an agreement that the British Government not only signed up to but also helped to design and it is right that the EU now restarts legal action in response. Johnson's agenda is driven by a need to appease the hardline Brexiteers in the European Research Group, ERG, and the Tory party so that he can cling on to power at any cost. For Mr. Johnson, Ireland's economic prosperity, peace and political stability is to be collateral damage in a self-serving power play.

The behaviour of the Tory Government is devoid of any integrity and the unified message from this Oireachtas is clear. The days of the British Government being allowed to bully Ireland and to ride roughshod over Ireland's interests are gone and they are not coming back. Mr. Johnson says that his legislation is about fixing the protocol for trade but the problem for the British Prime Minister is simple. No matter how hard he tries, Mr. Johnson cannot spin a lie. The undeniable truth is that the protocol is working but the facts do not suit Boris Johnson's threadbare narrative. The protocol gives businesses in the North access to both the British market and the EU Single Market of over 500 million people. The North's economy is outperforming the English economy. Business is growing and jobs are being created. Cross-border trade has increased significantly and the all-island economy is thriving. Now, because the Tory government in London cares very little for Ireland, it will happily take a wrecking ball to this progress. The impact on Ireland's economy would be colossal. It would have devastating consequences for agriculture in particular and put thousands of jobs at risk. This cannot be allowed to happen. The Irish Government, together with our European and international partners, cannot blink in the face of this Tory belligerence.

We also see that the protocol is being used as a Trojan horse by political unionism to undermine the Good Friday Agreement. This is because unionists cannot come to terms with the new political reality in the North, echoed in May's Assembly election. Mr. Johnson allows this to happen because it serves his self-interests. He allows the DUP to block the formation of an Executive in Belfast and uses political deadlock as an excuse to break international law in turn. The result is that the people of the North are left without a government as they deal with the most serious cost of living crisis in a generation.

Boris Johnson should be under no illusion. Ireland, Europe and the world can see what he is at. If this is his negotiating tactic, it is an extremely bad one. The British Government now risks a trade war that nobody wants and which would have catastrophic outcomes for everyone on both islands. Last week, I said that we need a unified Oireachtas approach in response to this assault on Ireland's interests. Mr.Johnson must hear from all of us, loudly and clearly, that our economic prosperity, our political stability, our peace and our Good Friday Agreement are not on the table. The future of our people is not a bargaining chip he gets to play with each and every time his grip on power slips.

Ireland is not alone. We are joined by our European partners against this threat. Mr. Maroš Šefčovič's confirmation that the EU will not renegotiate the protocol is very welcome and gives us confidence for what lies ahead. Ireland will not be the collateral damage in the Tory Brexit nightmare. Together with those throughout the world who care deeply about Ireland, we will face Boris Johnson down. The Taoiseach must use this meeting on the European Council to marshal that diplomatic focus towards this crucial goal.

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