Ned O'Sullivan (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

It is better when it comes from the ranks in Tuscany. In respect of the entire body politic in this country, when the history books on this period are written - I am sure there will be loads of them - it will be found that the conduct of these Houses was exemplary across the board, in stark contrast to the mayhem in the mother of parliaments where those involved have let themselves down so often, but we will not comment further.

Last week I expressed my disappointment - I am voicing it again today - at the comment made by the Taoiseach. Admittedly, he was speaking to the party faithful at a convention. Therefore, we will allow a little licence. However, he said he did not believe my party was wholehearted in its support for the approach taken to Brexit. Nothing could be further from the truth and it bears repeating. My party has a proud history so far as the European Union is concerned. It was Jack Lynch and Paddy Hillery who signed us up, with Fine Gael, at a time when other parties represented in the House were vehemently opposed to Ireland joining the European Union, but they have now realised their mistake and are very anxious that we stay in it and that there is a good Brexit.

My party is disappointed that there will be so few sitting days before 29 March. As a consequence, we will not have as much time to scrutinise or analyse the Bill as we would wish. Other countries, including France and Netherlands, published their Brexit legislation months ago. We are behind the curve in planning for it.Fianna Fáil intends to do all it can to facilitate the passage of the Bill through the House, having been passed expeditiously by the Dáil. We want to ensure this emergency legislation will be in place, should we require it. This morning I half thought that this debate would be entirely academic, that we would just have to go through the motions and pass the Bill, but it is now vitally important that it be passed because we do not know what tomorrow will bring.

The omnibus Bill is made up of 15 Parts which deal with matters within the remit of nine Ministers. Each part will be commenced by the individual Minister responsible at the appropriate time. My colleagues in the Seanad will take turns in the next few days to deal with matters in their areas, while my job is to look at the macro side. I will also conclude the debate at the end of the week. It is clear from the Bill that the industries and sectors most opposed to Brexit will need additional support and financial aid. Thousands of jobs are on the line and businesses and SMEs will need much greater support and assistance than the Government has offered to date. The time for waiting to see what will happen has long passed; we must stop talking and start doing. There is no room for complacency when it comes to safeguarding jobs.

Fianna Fáil is acutely aware of the impact Brexit will have on the country and the entire island. Given the uncertainty in the United Kingdom, it is in the national interest to provide stability and continue to facilitate the confidence and supply agreement. Many other parties have acted irresponsibly by looking for a snap election and repeatedly tabling motions of no confidence. They are entitled to do so, but that is the easy thing to do. My party leader, Deputy Micheál Martin, has given unerring direction and shown courage in that regard. There are critics in our own ranks of the confidence and supply agreement, but any rational person knows that we would have been wrong and putting the party before the country if we had done anything else in the past couple of years, especially in the light of Brexit. Politicians tend to do such a thing from time to time and my party has made mistakes in the past, but I am proud to say that in this case we have made no mistakes and that my party leader has made no mistakes in that regard. He deserves a little more appreciation from the Taoiseach, rather than provocative and goading statements from time to time.

A no-deal Brexit would mean that on 29 March under EU law the status of the United Kingdom would change from being a member state to a third country, with no trade co-operation agreement in place. The transition period, as provided for in the withdrawal agreement, would not apply, the United Kingdom would be outside the Single Market and the customs union and it would no longer be part of the framework of EU law known as the EU acquis. Every effort must be made to avoid a no-deal Brexit, which would cause severe economic harm to Ireland. We hope there will be a no-deal Brexit. I assume the Minister will have more up-to-date information than I have. We cannot second-guess what will happen at Westminster this evening or tomorrow.