Aideen Hayden (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I congratulate Senator Barrett on his National Mortgage and Housing Corporation Bill 2015, which was debated yesterday. It was an incredibly interesting discussion. I would like to reassure the Senator of my personal support for the issues raised in his legislation. I assure him that I brought the matter to the attention of the Labour Party Parliamentary Party last evening. It is an issue that will not be going away, as we all know.

I would like to bring it to the attention of the House that the ESRI has published a report on the impact on Ireland of a British exit from the European Union, or Brexit. Dr. Edgar Morgenroth, on behalf of the ESRI, has estimated that the impact of a Brexit on this country, measured in lost trade alone, would be approximately €3 billion per annum. He has made it clear that this would be mainly felt by domestic companies, rather than multinationals, with a particular impact in the Border region, which, as we know, has experienced significant difficulties over many years. On top of that, Dr. Morgenroth estimates that it would cost us €10 billion to re-establish an electric interconnector to replace the one we currently have with the United Kingdom. Many other issues are raised in the report, which echo the concerns raised in the report published earlier this year by the Joint Committee on European Union Affairs, of which I am a member.

I am somewhat concerned about the complacency that exists in this country regarding the possibility of a Brexit. I ask the Acting Leader to arrange a debate in this House with the Minister of State with responsibility for European Affairs. There has been a certain amount of reference to the fact that Mark Carney of the Bank of England and David Cameron appear to be in favour of the UK remaining in the EU while, at the same time, polls in the UK show that support for a Brexit is growing. I am concerned to hear people on the Irish side commenting that England's difficulty is Ireland's opportunity and suggesting that this is a great time to be looking for foreign direct investment in Ireland from those who cannot locate in the UK. I am glad the ESRI has put a stop to that by making it absolutely clear that the impact on Ireland of foreign direct investment relocating here from the UK would be minimal. In fact, it is more likely that companies would relocate to France or Germany. There is a massive cost to the uncertainty. I would like to hear what the Government has to say about how it intends to tackle this issue.We cannot interfere directly in what happens in another jurisdiction but there is no doubt that we must have a voice within the European Union. There are millions of Irish people living in the United Kingdom who must understand the impact a Brexit would have on this country. It is a very important issue and 2017 sounds like it is a long way away but it is not. It is only around the corner and it is a matter of national importance to this country.