Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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3. To ask the Taoiseach the preparations and contingency plans he has put in place in the event of a British exit from the European Union; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17524/16]

Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, Anti-Austerity Alliance)
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4. To ask the Taoiseach to report on contact he has had with the British Prime Minister, Mr. David Cameron, since the referendum on the United Kingdom's membership of the European Union. [18069/16]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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5. To ask the Taoiseach the responsibility of his Department to co-ordinate the contingency framework response following the Brexit referendum result, particularly in relation to United Kingdom European Union negotiations, British Irish relations, Northern Ireland trade and North-South Border impacts. [19357/16]

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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6. To ask the Taoiseach if he has considered setting up a Cabinet sub-committee to deal with the potential impact of Brexit on the economy. [19376/16]

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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7. To ask the Taoiseach his plans to meet the British Prime Minister to discuss post-Brexit relations between Ireland and the United Kingdom; if he has also met the First Minister and Deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland on the same matter; and his plans to meet the Scottish First Minister. [19377/16]

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 3 to 7, inclusive, together.

On the morning of 24 June, the British Prime Minister, David Cameron, telephoned to inform me personally of the result and of his intention to resign. He thanked the Irish Government for its support all through the process. He committed to ensuring that there would be early bilateral engagement at senior official level on key issues then arising. These include Northern Ireland, the Border and the common travel area. I subsequently met Mr. Cameron at last week's European Council. I took the opportunity at the meeting to speak of our long history with the UK and our strong and unique relationship, including the fact we share a number of specific interests and concerns, including Northern Ireland, the common travel area and the interconnectedness of our trade. The wish of the Irish Government is for Northern Ireland and the rest of the United Kingdom to remain part of the Single Market in order to avoid any borders between people, goods and services on these islands. In that context, I also passed on the concerns of the Scottish First Minister, whom I had spoken to on the phone and met at the British-Irish Council summit in Glasgow recently. I met the First Minister and Deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland at the North-South Ministerial Council yesterday, having spoken to them the week before by telephone. Yesterday we agreed a range of actions to work together to ensure that Northern Ireland's interests are protected and the benefits of North-South co-operation are fully recognised in any new arrangements that emerge in terms of United Kingdom's future relationship with the European Union.

On 24 June, the Government adopted a contingency framework identifying key policy issues to be managed by Departments arising from the referendum vote for the UK to leave the EU. The framework maps out the key issues that will be of most importance to Ireland in the coming weeks and months. This will be a process, as important issues that emerge and recede in the course of negotiations will be reflected upon.

The contingency framework is being co-ordinated by my Department. It is based on preparations over many months, including inputs by Departments to identify the key strategic and sectoral issues arising from the UK's disengagement with the EU. The framework will ensure that the Government and its constituent Departments are able to focus on key policy issues to be addressed in any exit negotiations with a view to minimising potential operational risks likely to arise. Using the contingency framework, Ministers, Departments and agencies will track and adapt the detail of risk management strategies arising in each of the policy and operational areas identified. Substantial work has been undertaken across Government to identify those key strategic, policy and operational risks. This work will be intensified and prioritised across all Departments and agencies. Priority issues identified include UK-EU negotiations, British-Irish relations, Northern Ireland, trade, investment, North-South Border impact, competitiveness and macroeconomic issues, research and innovation funding, and energy. More will be added as the terms and conditions of the new UK-EU relationship evolve.

A number of existing structures will he strengthened as necessary. These include the Cabinet committee on EU affairs, the North-South Ministerial Council, and the British-Irish Council; and at official level, the joint Ireland-UK Secretaries General-permanent secretaries process, the EU senior officials' group, the interdepartmental group on the UK EU referendum, and external stakeholders and interested bodies.

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Ceann Comhairle)
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We must conclude in six minutes and four Deputies are offering. If they take a minute each, we will get everyone in.

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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The fallout from Brexit has cast a long shadow over the budget plans because of the international uncertainty caused by the UK's decision to part company with the EU. If the British economy goes into recession, would the Taoiseach agree that it will make matters difficult for us here - difficult for Irish businesses and farmers whose main market is the UK, and difficult for the tourism industry because of the weak pound? We will have a mighty job, and they will have a mighty job in the UK as well, to avoid a recession both in Europe and in the UK.

In that context, Deputy Kenny's status as Taoiseach has been badly damaged and diminished in recent days. First, a number of his Ministers are in open revolt over a stated policy by the Taoiseach. Second, the cack-handed way in which the Taoiseach approached the issue of the North-South Ministerial Council, where he had his proposals trailed in the media over the weekend before discussing them with the First Minister, was a mistake, because we will need all-island forums to discuss this. Lastly, at the British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly this weekend there was fairly unanimous agreement that there should not be a hard land border between the North of Ireland and the Republic. Would the Taoiseach agree with that? Some weeks ago, when I said I had some doubts that the Remain side would prevail, I asked the Taoiseach whether he had a plan B. I did not hear a plan B in the long list the Taoiseach read out.

I think I heard a tone of panic though.

Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, Anti-Austerity Alliance)
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It is clear the implications of Brexit are profound in many different spheres and one, in particular, where we have seen it clearly in the events of the past week and a half, is British politics. It could clearly have an impact in politics across Europe. Many people feared the right could be strengthened after the Leave vote, but the right is in disarray. Mr. Cameron and Mr. Johnson are gone and Mr. Farage is following them. On the left, Mr. Corbyn remains. The key question now is the attempted coup by the Blairites against Mr. Jeremy Corbyn in order to remove him and put a Blairite back in charge of the Labour Party. There is a battle of two parties in one Labour Party, that of the pro-war, neo-liberal Blairites and that of the socialists of Mr. Corbyn and, for example, many of the 60,000 people who have joined the Labour Party over the past week. That battle inside the Labour Party is vital and I send the solidarity of the Anti-Austerity Alliance to Mr. Corbyn. We hope he and those coming around the Labour Party prevail-----

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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They will be strengthened by that.

Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, Anti-Austerity Alliance)
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-----in that battle and they have a Labour Party worthy of the name, unlike the Labour Party in this country. There should be a call to a conference of the broad labour movement to defend his leadership and therefore have a socialist-led Labour Party engaging in a general election campaign, fighting for a government position that can be won in Britain. That will create a completely different picture in terms of the nature of exit that will take place, as well as the debate right across Europe putting on the agenda the question of fighting for a Europe that serves the interests of people; it would be a socialist Europe, as opposed to the neo-liberal, militarised Europe that has been rejected.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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Of course it was the neo-liberals who won the day in terms of Brexit, including Mr. Michael Gove.

Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, Anti-Austerity Alliance)
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What about David Cameron?

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Are they allies?

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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They are now going to proceed with policies that are the very antithesis of what Deputy Murphy proposed.

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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From Syriza to Farage.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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They go from xenophobia to the economy to the corporation tax being brought down in the United Kingdom. When will the Deputy give up the pretence as this Leave campaign was fronted by right-wing people?

Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, Anti-Austerity Alliance)
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Look at British politics now.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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That gives the completely opposite result of what the Deputy sought. It is an extraordinary state of denial he has put himself in. I do not want to get involved with internal British politics but to suggest the maintenance of thestatus quoin the British Labour Party is somehow going to advance the issue is beyond my comprehension.

Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, Anti-Austerity Alliance)
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That is not surprising.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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I put it to the Taoiseach that there is a process in place for co-ordinating activity relating to our response but I question if it is large enough or has enough resources. This is one of the biggest ever diplomatic and administrative challenges we have faced as a country and it needs senior people working full-time on it. I am particularly concerned about the need for us to have a whole-of-government approach. I suggest there needs to be a series of a temporary secondments from other Departments to the unit in the Taoiseach's Department responsible for co-ordinating and managing the Government's response to Brexit.

After yesterday, it is clear something must happen in terms of the decision by the Northern Ireland First Minister, Ms Arlene Foster, who will not support the sort of inclusive and open North-South action we need. That process was wrongly and badly handled, as I stated already, but the key point is we cannot let that be the end of the matter. We need an all-island Brexit-specific session of each North-South body before the start of September. Will the Taoiseach put that in place?

The Democratic Unionist Party and Sinn Féin together colluded in getting rid of the civil dialogue as part of the Good Friday Agreement. They never wanted it to get off the ground. Now people are screaming for it to get together-----

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Ceann Comhairle)
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We must conclude.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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-----to allow proper dialogue between trade unions and business interests. As Deputy Brendan Smith has said, hospitality, tourism, agrifood and small and medium enterprises across the Border are really anxious now and very worried about the impact of Brexit. We need a framework that the civil dialogue would have facilitated in the North with the Republic.

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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It is clear that the ultra-left and the ultra-right stood as one to bring about a disastrous result in Britain as the Trots stood with Farage, Johnson and Gove to do untold damage to our prospects as the people of Ireland, North and South. My focus, however, is not on the plans that those on the ultra-left see, with no amount of chaos being too much for them in order to see themselves thriving. We must now put this country first.

I ask the Taoiseach for specifics. The front runner in the Tory leadership election seems to be Ms Theresa May and she has indicated she will not invoke Article 50 of the treaties of the European Union until, at the earliest, next year. We should give the space for that. There is a very divided view coming from Europe, with a very strong negative view coming from the Commission and, bluntly, my socialist colleague in the Parliament. There is a more measured response from President Tusk. What is the Taoiseach's view on the timing of the invocation of Article 50 and what we should be doing bilaterally with Britain and trilaterally with Britain and the European Union to shape our position? We are the most affected nation, other than the UK itself, by all of this so we should have a very clear strategy for what we want to emerge at the end of negotiations, even before those negotiations begin.

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Ceann Comhairle)
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I must ask the Taoiseach to correspond with the Deputies as the time has elapsed and we have eaten badly into time for other business. Will he correspond with Members?

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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I will do so.

Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, Anti-Austerity Alliance)
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That is a "No".

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Ceann Comhairle)
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Go on, briefly.

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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I reject Deputy Burton's assertion that there are Ministers in open revolt.

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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What about the vote?

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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We went through 36 or 37 items today and all were done properly, as the Deputy would be aware from her experience.

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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We have not had a Bill enacted since January.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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It is a relief for Labour.

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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Everything is going swimmingly.

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Ceann Comhairle)
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Allow the Taoiseach to answer.

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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Just because people have strong views about particular issues does not mean there is open revolt.

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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How will they vote on the Bill?

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Ceann Comhairle)
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Let the Taoiseach answer.

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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Plan B has already been set out, dealing with trade, investment, Northern Ireland, British-Irish issues, social welfare, foreign affairs, justice, tourism, the economy, trade and investment, research, innovation and energy. All these items are specific and they are dealt with in considerable detail.

I further point out that we have already had senior officials from Britain over here in the Department of the Taoiseach and vice versa. In so far as he is still there, Prime Minister Cameron has committed to dealing with us with respect to the common travel area, the peace process and the open Border. I do not want to see a hard Border, customs or checkpoints. I have said that 20 times already. We will continue to work rigorously with our colleagues in the North-South Ministerial Council, with agreement on ten particular issues yesterday. We need to expand that and consider many other issues. I will develop that in correspondence with Deputies who raised the questions.