Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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5. To ask the Taoiseach if he discussed with other heads of Government within the EU the serious implications for Ireland of Britain leaving the EU. [27105/16]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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6. To ask the Taoiseach if the European Union division of his Department has changed its structures since the Brexit referendum result; and if extra human resources and funding has been allocated to same. [28624/16]

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 5 and 6 together.

The issue of the UK’s membership of the EU has been a regular feature of my discussions with EU counterparts for some time, including in the period preceding the June referendum. This outreach remains critical in the run up to the next phase.

During the negotiations which will commence when the UK has formally triggered article 50, it will be essential that our partners and the institutions have a detailed understanding of Ireland’s priorities. In this regard, I welcome the statement provided by Prime Minister May at the weekend that the UK will trigger article 50 by next March at the latest. Our efforts will redouble now that we have some degree of clarity about the British Government's intentions. It is important that the process now moves forward in the most practical and sensible manner.

In terms of my engagement with EU partners, at every opportunity I make it a priority to emphasise and explain Ireland’s particular concerns about Northern Ireland, Border and citizenship issues, the common travel area and the inter-connectedness of our economies. We had an extensive discussion on the implications of the referendum result at the June European Council in Brussels. As I relayed to this House afterwards, I took the opportunity during that exchange to outline Ireland’s long and complex history with the UK, the uniquely close social, political and economic ties between these two islands and the profound implications for Ireland of a UK departure from the EU. Since June, I have held bilateral meetings with Chancellor Merkel, President Hollande, Prime Minister May and the President of the European Council, Mr. Donald Tusk. I also met with the other 26 EU leaders earlier this month at a summit in Bratislava. During all of these exchanges, I have ensured that Ireland’s particular concerns have been highlighted and explained in detail.

My efforts have been complemented by those of my colleagues. The Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade has spoken to every one of his 27 EU counterparts since the referendum, while other Ministers and senior officials have also been active in outlining Ireland’s case in contacts at EU level and beyond. In parallel, extensive analysis, planning and contingency work is progressing across all Government Departments. This is supported by administrative changes, including within my Department. A new division, led by a second Secretary General is bringing elements of the former EU, international and British-Irish/Northern Ireland divisions together to provide strategic oversight on particular issues. This includes an obvious emphasis on Brexit and support for the newly-established Cabinet committee on Brexit which I chair. Staff from the former EU division are being transferred to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade as part of the strengthening of that Department’s role and capacity on EU matters including those related to the Brexit negotiations. Engagement with Ireland’s embassy network abroad will also be important and already at embassy level some new posts have been established to focus exclusively on Brexit work.

Across Government, staffing and resources remain under review and will continue to be calibrated to respond to particular needs as this complex phase progresses.

Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Taoiseach for his response. Unfortunately, the indications from the Conservatives point to a hard Brexit. Are we going to witness Britain making the same old mistakes again in Northern Ireland by ignoring the democratic decision made by the people there in the recent referendum? If so, the people of England will be enforcing their will on Northern Ireland again. There is real concern along the Border, which is the area I am most familiar with, and in Northern Ireland with regard to what is going to happen. Prime Minister May's offer of a consultative voice in the Article 50 negotiations falls far short of the democratic wishes of the people of Northern Ireland.

If this trend continues, the Government will immediately need to show the heads of the EU - the President of the Council, the President of the Commission and the other 26 Heads of Government - forcefully and clearly that Britain's approach will unfortunately have a wide and negative impact on this island and on relationships between North and South and between east and west. It would not simply be about Britain exiting the EU. It would vandalise the layered complexities of the Irish political process. It would also damage the totality of relationships about which we have often spoken in this House and to which many communiqués issued by successive Heads of Government in Britain and in Ireland have referred.

I have previously raised with the Taoiseach the obstacles that may be encountered when products leave this island and transit Britain on their way to destinations in the rest of Europe or in other continents. Surely difficulties will arise when cargo leaves our island and hence the EU, goes through a non-member state - the UK - and tries to re-enter the EU again. I remind the House that we do not have ferry services to the north of Europe. This morning, I met a group of people from Fermanagh who have been involved in political life over many decades. They are very concerned about the messages they are getting from Britain regarding the complete and serious difficulties that will be faced by the entire island if these issues are not dealt with successfully.

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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I do not disagree with Deputy Smith's comments. When I met the Prime Minister in Downing Street, she said clearly that the British Government did not favour a return to a hard Border. She does not favour a return to a hard Border and neither do we. We will argue these fundamentally important matters forcefully and clearly, as suggested by the Deputy. The Secretary of State, Mr. Brokenshire, told the Conservative Party conference today that there is no intention of having a return to a hard Border. These clear statements need to be backed up.

It has been decided that while the European Commission, which has always dealt with applications to join the EU and in which the expertise is lodged, will be centrally involved in the negotiations on Britain's withdrawal from the EU, the European Council - the Heads of Government and Heads of State - will make the ultimate decisions here as the elected leaders of member states. These decisions will have the greatest impact on people in the various member states, including Ireland. Obviously, in light of what is at stake here, we will have a facility for knowing about every step of the discussions as they take place. The European Council will make those decisions.

At the moment, a lorryload of machinery can leave Clare and go to Dublin or Rosslare before travelling through Britain and on to the EU's border with Ukraine without anything other than invoices being needed. It is clear that if and when Britain leaves the EU and becomes a completely independent sovereign country, having implemented legislation that removes any EU jurisdiction on it, paperwork or a different kind of approval might well be needed if Irish cargo is to be able to travel through Britain. This would cost time and money and would have obvious implications for jobs. That is why the common travel area, which the British and Irish Governments want to retain, is so important for us here. It is in that context that we will have to see what issues Britain is talking about and will present.

I do not have enough time during this Question Time to deal with many of the implications of this long and complicated subject, as raised by Deputy Smith. We will have ample opportunity to discuss it in the House in the future. I will also have opportunities to brief party leaders about what is going on. I would like to think that by November, when we get to the North-South Ministerial Council, we will have a much clearer fix on where the horizon is and what we need to do in respect of Northern Ireland, the cross-Border links and the economic trade. We have been talking to Enterprise Ireland about the hundreds of thousands of small businesses here that are being affected by the sterling currency fluctuations, which are causing concern. We will have to talk to Europe about the implications of that.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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I hope the Government is not reverting to the model that was used by the last Government when the media was briefed before information was given to the Cabinet and other interested parties. In the months since the Brexit referendum, I do not think the Government has kept the promise it made in our discussions at that time to keep pro-EU parties - all parties are allegedly pro-EU at this stage - informed of developments and to consult them on strategy. We had one major meeting in the aftermath of the Brexit vote, but very little has happened since then. It is clear from this morning's story and from the Taoiseach's reply to these questions that everybody wants the island of Ireland to be treated as a special case in the absence of UK membership of the Single Market. That is not news. It is about as blindingly obvious as anything could be.

All of this shows how little concrete progress has been made in defining our position into a set of concrete negotiating priorities. We have been told nothing about what we might ask for on the specific issues of how we want this island to be treated, the legal mechanisms that might be considered and the implications for the EU as a whole. How do we ensure that people, goods and services can continue to flow on this island? It is easy to say that is what we want. That is all I am hearing from the British and Irish Governments and from everybody else. How do we ensure the west-east common travel area is protected? What ideas are we coming up with in that respect?

We have seen a great deal of bluster from the British Government, but very little substance. Despite what Mr. Brokenshire and the Prime Minister have said, they have come up with very little detail. A tug of war seems to be going on in the Tory Party between the hard Brexiteers and those who want a soft exit. Two groups have been formed within the Conservative Party. Those involved in the "Leave Means Leave" campaign, which has substantial financial backing, want to revert to a World Trade Organization-type arrangement, as opposed to retaining access to the full Single Market.

It is very easy to say we do not want borders on this island, or that we want everything to be the same in some magical way. Obviously, there is work to be done on the actual detail. Precious little progress has been made in going beyond the generalities and knuckling down to consider the specific route we will travel to ensure we ask for the right things for the island of Ireland and for the east-west travel area.

The Taoiseach has outlined the roles of the Commission and the Council. It was said at the outset that Ireland believed in the primacy of the Council and the member states in the negotiations. I think President Juncker has continued his ill-starred approach to this issue to date. He is talking tough, but he is ignoring the seriousness of the issue. I think President Tusk has been far more measured and far more engaged.

We were originally going to meet to discuss the Dublin and Monaghan bombings. A week ago, there was no mention of Brexit being on the agenda for tonight. We are now meeting tonight on Brexit, presumably because of the memorandum going to the Cabinet today. The first we heard about it was when it was added on. We need separate meetings on Brexit that are well flagged in advance so that people can be brought up to speed with the officials.

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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I do not object to that. I do not want to be calling the leaders of the parties together three days in a row. We will be discussing the Dublin and Monaghan bombings and Brexit. We need to have a meeting about NAMA as well. We have received all the submissions. That is a separate question. I do not want to have to call all the leaders together every second day to discuss things. If we can get through a number of-----

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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I do not think there has been a meeting on Brexit since the first meeting.

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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Deputy Martin does not mind. The UK Prime Minister has said that Brexit means Brexit, so the intention is to leave the European Union. The intention appears to be that Britain will not continue to be a member of the Single Market, though Britain is interested in the Erasmus programme and research programmes and obviously might wish to contribute to them. Leaving Europe would mean control of borders and, therefore, control of the number of immigrants going into Britain. The question will be on the conditions that might apply to Britain in respect of access to the Single Market.

We need to work on the options to be considered by Britain and, as a consequence, by the European Union in respect of the Swiss model, the Norwegian-Swedish model, the Singapore model and the new British model for access, and we are doing so. Until we are clear on the details of the discussion Britain is going through, it is difficult to be specific about what we say.

We negotiated the PEACE and INTERREG programmes when we had the EU Presidency. PEACE has a fund of €269 million between 2014 and 2020. The Northern Ireland-Scotland INTERREG programme is €283 million. These cover issues like shared education, children and young people, shared spaces and services and building relations at a local level. The INTERREG programme deals with research and innovation, environment, sustainable transport and health. Many of these projects are supported by the European Regional Development Fund. We need to know the situation regarding these moneys. If and when Britain leaves the European Union, Northern Ireland will not be a member of the European Union. The funds were allocated between Ireland, Northern Ireland and Scotland for important uses. When it becomes clear what it is that we are talking about, we then decide how best to negotiate in terms of the island of Ireland.

I am also concerned when I hear the Chancellor of the Exchequer state that they are in for a turbulent period economically in Britain. We can see the evidence of this already in agri-sector employment in Ireland. Currency fluctuations, over which we have no control, have an impact on exports, prices and employment. These are issues we will have to raise with the European Union, of which we will continue to be a member. While we do not have control over the currency situation, exports from Britain to here have an advantage in the sense of cost, while our exports to the UK are at a disadvantage. The agri-sector, as you know, a Leas-Cheann Comhairle, is very important for the 200,000 jobs across the entire spectrum in Ireland, and the corollary applies in England.

To be honest, until we see the colour of the issues that are going to count, we are preparing as best we can. We will keep Members briefed, but it is too early to be sufficiently detailed to make political decisions.

Pat Gallagher (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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I am obliged to move on to Question No. 7. I regret that I cannot take any supplementary questions.