Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party)
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8. To ask the Taoiseach his strategy for Ireland in the event that the United Kingdom fails to negotiate access to the European Economic Area post invocation of Article 50. [19473/16]

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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At the informal meeting of 27 EU Heads of State and Government on 28 June there was a preliminary discussion about next steps, further to the outcome of the recent referendum. I should emphasise that a large degree of uncertainty persists on the UK side in regard to a number of key issues. These in turn will have a significant bearing on the process in the months ahead. To a great extent therefore, it is not possible to speculate on negotiation outcomes at this point.

Partner countries accept that UK politics has been going through a turbulent phase and we will have to wait until new Prime Minister May outlines her Government's approach and her strategy regarding its future relationship with the EU. Of particular note will be clarity around the timing of the triggering of Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union, as well as the separate question of what type of relationship the UK will seek with the EU. Access to the European Economic Area is one of a number of options that might be considered by the UK in terms of its future relationship with the EU, but this will be a decision for the British Prime Minister to take in due course.

In the meantime, a number of important matters have been clarified. The 27 EU leaders agreed that there can be no negotiations until Article 50 is triggered, and that, while this will not happen immediately, it should take place as soon as possible. In addition, it was agreed that the European Council, that is, the Heads of State and Government, will direct the process. The European Commission and the European Parliament will also play important roles. Indications are that the negotiations could take at least two years. In the interim, the UK remains a full member of the EU.

Regarding Ireland’s strategic approach to negotiations, our overall interest lies in a stable, prosperous and outward-looking UK. The closer its future relationship is with the EU, the better from our perspective. We will need to make sure in due course that the negotiating mandate, which has to be given by the Member States, including Ireland, reflects our particular concerns. We have been emphasising our unique perspective, especially in regard to Northern Ireland, North-South relations, the common travel area and trade, to our EU partners for some time and I am confident that this is now widely understood by them.

Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party)
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Will the Taoiseach consider establishing a forum on Anglo-Irish relations outside the North-South Ministerial Council and outside any veto that any party might have within it? It is the sort of forum we need, like the Forum for Europe, the Forum for Peace and Reconciliation or the New Ireland Forum. It is vital we have some sort of place where we can think about this in a certain way. Will the Taoiseach proceed with that idea outside the North-South Ministerial Council or any of the confines of the Good Friday Agreement?

Will the Taoiseach also make certain in the negotiations that there is recognition of the Anglo-Irish Agreement and the possibility of the reunification of Ireland in any future agreement between the EU and the UK? In other words, we cannot have an agreement that might preclude the possibility of a reunification of Ireland. That would obviously have real consequences for whatever deal would have to go through.

Will the Taoiseach consider establishing an advisory council similar to what First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, MSA, established in Scotland, which is bringing in international, academic and other national experts outside the public service system, and which would advise our Government in the approach it needs to take? First Minister Sturgeon set that up within days of the Brexit vote. Such is the scale and the implications of this issue, it is vital for us to set up a similar advisory council. We have a meeting tomorrow and we might be able to consider the details of it, but I would be interested to know the Taoiseach's views in the House as to whether such an advisory council might be set up.

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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A number of existing entities deal with some of this, such as the British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly, the British-Irish Council and, as the Deputy said, the North-South Ministerial Council. It is important to say that I want to restructure the Department of the Taoiseach in the sense of forming a new Cabinet committee, which will be chaired by me with principal Ministers to attend and those, if necessary, beyond that; to strengthen the numbers in the different missions we have abroad in Rome, London, Berlin, Paris and so on; and to take in extra staff to the relevant Departments, either by contract or by moving from one Department to the other. We will transfer some staff from the Department of the Taoiseach back to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in order to have a more specific focus in the Department of the Taoiseach, assisted by a second Secretary General and staff to focus on Brexit and related issues.

The Deputy mentioned an Anglo-Irish forum. This is worth considering, but we have a lot of contact at the moment. Senior officials are meeting. Deputy Martin raised this question already. I will look for an early meeting with new Prime Minister May. In respect of a Northern Ireland summit, these are important issues. It is becoming very clear to Northern Ireland representatives what the implications of Brexit might mean, depending on the eventual outcome.

On the question of the implications in terms of the reunification of Ireland, we are co-guarantors of the Good Friday Agreement. That contains the elements for consideration of whether that might be given consideration, triggered by a future Secretary of State if it was felt there was a majority in favour in that regard. The meetings that have now taken place with some Ministers here on a cross-Border basis are beginning to be understood by many of the MLAs. The costs could be quite considerable, as will the deficit in infrastructure and planning for future years. If, for instance, the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform needs to provide moneys for project X or Y, if there will be a decline or withdrawal of European moneys we cannot front-load it from here with no compensation coming from the other side. These are all things that will have to be teased out.

Clearly we will have to wait and see first what the British want. Do they want a Norwegian, Swiss, Canadian or Singaporean strategy?

What is the intent of the new Prime Minister? I hope to be able to get an early meeting with her to discuss some of this.

It is important that we should have the capacity to draw on some of the experience that exists here on Europe and the United Kingdom. I would not want to set up a statutory council, but there are people around who have had great experience in Europe over the years and have dealt with Britain and Europe. They have a lot of experience on which we can draw. There were some discussions about a consultation process on an all-island basis, and while particular parties can have different points of view I have worked very well with First Minister Foster. I was in Enniskillen in each of the past five years for Remembrance Sunday. It is necessary that I, on behalf of the Government, understand the feelings and challenges of Northern Ireland business and how people are looking at the outcome of the vote and the consequence of Brexit for them. While we do not have a negotiating mandate down here, it is important for them to understand that we have an interest, obviously, because of the Good Friday Agreement and North-South association. These matters will have to be teased out in great detail.

If we have a situation where we have a country remaining in the EU, which is Ireland, and the United Kingdom leaves, we will have some capacity to monitor goods travelling through from the Republic of Ireland to Northern Ireland, that is from an EU country to a country that is not in the EU. I do not want to see any hard border or the checkpoints that were there for many years. We do not want to see that.

There is a range of issues, and I will brief Members on them tomorrow, in respect of the changes we will make to the structure in the Department of the Taoiseach to deal with Brexit and its consequences and beefing up those things. In that sense, I know First Minister Sturgeon put together a capacity for international advice. The Minister for Foreign Affairs has already brought back all of the ambassadors and we have a lot of contact and a lot of connection there. We do not need too many entities, but it is important that the wide range and spectrum of advice and information is available to us and it will be. All of this is moving and the next step is for the Prime Minister to say-----

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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Get Jeremy Corbyn in.

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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-----what they want and what is the strategy and intent.

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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Join the British Labour Party.

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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I wish Jeremy and the other two candidates well, of course, and I thank the Deputy.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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He is our best hope over there.

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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In that sense all of those entities are in play. A real driving focus from a specific committee here with capacity to call in Ministers and deal with all of those different agencies and get the information will all come to heel whenever Prime Minister May triggers article 50. I tend to agree with Deputy Martin that it should not be delayed too long. The Prime Minister was not to be elected until October, then it was September and now it is today, so there would be a view across Europe that if this were to be delayed too long into the new year it would cause a lot of confusion, uncertainty and angst, particularly in financial sectors. It is the right of the country which wishes to leave to trigger article 50 and we will have to wait and see what she actually says.

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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Deputy Martin is right. Things have moved at a quicker pace than we expected even last week, regarding the formation of the new British Government and potentially the triggering of article 50 of the treaty. The point we were discussing here on how to formulate an agreed basis for an approach from Ireland that would impact well for the people North and South is something that now has new urgency. I will not make any comment about how this has been handled to date, other than to say I do not think it should derail the need to do it still. I do not think anybody has a veto on that.

I have had discussions with some colleagues. I was at a Party of European Socialists leaders' conference last week, and Deputy Boyd Barrett will be delighted that I had discussions with Jeremy Corbyn there. I and Colum Eastwood made a joint presentation to all colleagues on the unique impact of the British vote on Northern Ireland. Perhaps tomorrow is the time to discuss this, but we need to put on the table the proposal of many people here for some type of forum to know what is the optimum end game for the people of this island so that we can condition the ground rules that will be set by the Council for the negotiations once the article is triggered.

Deputy Ryan made a very valid point on broadening the scope of people. I do not want to sound in any way critical, but many of the very fine civil servants we have engaged in these matters, who are some of the finest public servants in Europe, come from a mindset that is very eurocentric. We need to broaden this debate now because we are in very changed times. The point made by Deputy Adams, which the Taoiseach answered last week by stating structural fund issues were in abeyance or on hold - I cannot remember the exact phrase used - is that people are depending on these funds to plan not only the infrastructure matters the Taoiseach has discussed but also community initiatives and PEACE IV, and we need to have very much sooner than later a clear timeline on how these matters will be funded and resolved.

Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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I want to caution against any additional structure between this State and Britain. Of course the State has a duty and responsibility to engage with the British Government on matters relating to this State, but the virtue of the arrangements we have with the British-Irish Council and the North-South Ministerial Council is that we have an all-island North-South joined up position despite the difficulties and differences of opinion.

Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party)
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And a Unionist veto on anything we do.

Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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We do not have a Unionist veto if we do not concede, and this brings me to my next point, which is that the idea of a national forum needs to be advanced. I welcome the Taoiseach's remarks today about getting the opinions of the business sector in the North. I can tell him it is not just clear-cut; many people now understand this will not be good for the economy or for harmony in the North or for the people in Border counties. We will have the chance to talk tomorrow and once again argue for the need to have all-island inclusive involvement of as many people as are prepared to be part of it. The three leaders here have all agreed on this idea and the Taoiseach has said it is a good idea, so one leader saying "No" should not stop us.

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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It is not the first time a Unionist party has disagreed with a party down here. Back in the 1980s, the late Garret FitzGerald invited the parties to talk at the New Ireland Forum. The Unionist party did not participate formally, but the two McGimpsey brothers did. Irrespective of the difference of opinion about it, it is important in an all-island sense that we have a fix on this because people involved in Northern business are making contact stating they would like to put forward their views on what they think are the challenges. It will be very important when discussions take place about the future relationship. Ireland is at the elbow of the journey to the UK and Europe and, clearly, our association with Northern Ireland is critical to this. When the projects and proposals are being looked at, we will have a resource problem unless we can get agreement on how these things can be dealt with.