Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Not to digress from the question, I share the Deputy's view. I will always stand up for the right of my colleagues in Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil to participate in the Dáil and will respect their mandate to the fullest. I thank the Deputy for the kind words about the appointment of my colleague, the Minister of State. I am pleased to have him as my co-pilot at this busy time.

The Deputy is right about the importance of the EU and UK working together. I do not like Brexit - we all opposed it but we respect the sovereign decision taken. Obviously, this country would like to see a closer relationship between the UK and the EU. That is in the first instance a matter for the UK Government but Ireland, which will always be a member of the EU in how we approach this, will be constructive. I know from my conversations with the Prime Minister, the Foreign Secretary and the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland that there is a real eagerness to explore a closer practical relationship. That is, as the Deputy suggests, in the interests of all of us who have come since the Good Friday generation. We have peace on the island and between the two islands; it is the prosperity we now need to see fully harnessed.

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