Ned O'Sullivan (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I appreciate the Minister taking time out from an extremely busy schedule to be here with us. The good turnout in the Chamber shows appreciation for that. We all agree with much of what the Minister has outlined in his statement. As we are very close to the 31 October deadline it is vital that in the weeks ahead all of us in these Houses continue to work together in a non-partisan way for the good of the country. My party, Fianna Fáil, under the leadership of Deputy Micheál Martin, has not been found wanting. Despite huge pressure on the leadership of the party from within and without we have facilitated the Government to the best of our ability. Our commitment to the confidence and supply agreement has often been challenged and questioned, not least by those who would not be in government without the benefit of our patience and forbearance.

Brexit is a case of binn béal ina thost. The less said the better, or perhaps I should rephrase that, the less uninformed comment the better. We are in a very volatile situation and do not need to be rocking boats. That solidarity has been there and I am sure the Minister appreciates it. Opposition parties have a duty to oppose and to scrutinise everything that comes from the Government. As the main Opposition party we have not failed in that duty. The balance is right across the board among all parties and Independents.

The situation is changing fast, day to day and sometimes from hour to hour. The Minister has brought us up to speed here and I listened with interest to the Taoiseach's remarks in the Dáil this afternoon. Like everybody else I have been closely following the commentary on RTÉ on the documents which were leaked and which have been the basis of conversation for the past couple of days. One would not need to be a political genius to know there is an awful lot going on behind the scenes. The public knows this and I have a sense that the public is tiring of what many see as misinformation and disinformation being put about by the various parties to the negotiations. The one bit of advice I would give the Minister, and I am not implying anything against him, is that the public’s patience is not unlimited. In the final weeks before 31 October it is critical that Government speaks with one clear voice and insofar as possible in the delicate situation we are in, that it would tell the unvarnished truth about how things are.The information leaked by RTÉ seems to have let several cats out of the bag. I listened to an interview with the former Taoiseach, Mr. Bertie Ahern, this morning in which he stated that to his certain knowledge, the substance of the leaked non-paper document has been in circulation for more than 12 months. If that is the case, one wonders why there is all this false shock and horror. The Taoiseach indicated today that he envisages some types of Border checks being established one way or the other following Brexit, as the Tánaiste likewise suggested. Are we finally getting down to the nitty-gritty of our vision of what should happen as opposed to the vision-----