Lisa Chambers (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank all Members who contributed to the debate. I also thank the Minister, Deputy Coveney, and Minister of State, Deputy Brophy, for being here.

It is clear that the message that will go out from this Chamber is that we are united in our approach to Brexit and the outcome that we believe to be in the best interests of all citizens on this island. It is rare in politics to find an issue that unites all parties. This is one of those issues. There has never been any wavering by any party in this State in terms of that united position. That is our strength. Let us be under no illusion: this is a grave threat to our country, economically and socially. It a measure that will change the interaction and relationship that we have with our nearest neighbour and closest market in the UK. In fact, it has already changed that interaction and relationship and that is regrettable. The UK has taken a different path and we are on our path.

As mentioned earlier, we are at the heart of Europe. We have always been and will continue to be there. Our path is with Europe, to be a strong voice at the centre of Europe, and to be at the table making decisions. From the UK's perspective, what it has given up is immense. It was one of the strongest and largest member states of the EU. It had a seat at the top table and it was listened to and looked to for leadership from many member states, including Ireland. Many will attest to the fact that very often we used the UK diplomatic service and civil service and we interacted with its Ministers and MPs weekly because they had more resources than we did. We worked together on many issues. They supported us in terms of our position on tax and on many other key issues on which we would not always have seen eye to eye with other member states. We will miss that camaraderie and that relationship, but that exposes the need for more resources around how we conduct our business at an EU level. We are going it alone now, we will no longer have the UK support, but it is okay that we are on a different path. For the first time in a very long time we are on a different path from the UK.

As I said, the UK has given up a lot for the romantic notion of a great empire that it is going to build. I listened to MPs trumpet that the UK had secured a trade deal with Japan, but it has only replaced what it already had. There are many more trade deals that the UK had as a member of the European Union that it now needs to renegotiate. The suggestion that the UK is somehow going to get a better deal on its own than it would have got as a member of the EU trading bloc is farcical but the UK is selling this to its people. When I listen to Boris Johnson making the numerous speeches he makes, backed up by - this is quite obvious and blatant - Dominic Cummings and a small number of people, I do wonder if he ever feels bad for the actions that he has taken as leader of his own country. He has taken steps, in the past year in particular, to make his people poor, damage the reputation of his country, and put himself, his Government and his country on the outskirts of Europe. Why any political leader would do that to his or her own people and country is beyond me. I would not sleep at night if I was at the helm having taken the decisions that he has taken.

Thankfully, we do not have that situation here in Ireland. We have good leadership here. We have a good negotiating team. The Minister, Deputy Coveney, has done a good job, the former Taoiseach did a good job and the current Taoiseach is doing an excellent job. We have a good team. The Department of Foreign Affairs, our civil servants, diplomats and our ambassadors, who very often operate behind the scenes, are doing an amazing job. I welcome the opportunity to say that on the record of the House. The solidarity from the US and across the European Union is testament to our civil servants, ambassadors and staff of the Department of Foreign Affairs. It shows how strong our lobby is and how many friends we have made along the way that we have secured that support globally. Very few nations will enjoy the support that we have.

We are a small country but we always punch above our weight. I am proud that we always punch above our weight on the international stage. I agree with Senator Byrne that we often scoff at the visits of members of our local authorities, the Dáil and Seanad to the US and across the globe on St. Patrick's Day, but those engagements are important. They are about making friends and connections such that members can pick up the phone to somebody on a first name basis and ask for his or help on a particular issue. That is why we are in the position we are in today.As a country, we are respected, well liked and well connected. That is a positive place to be. This is a monumental challenge. I fear that we are on the cusp of getting a weak Brexit deal. I do not believe that the UK Government will walk away completely but I think it will sign up to an extremely weak deal that will amount, basically, to a no-deal Brexit. The UK Government will sell that to its own people as if it has won and done a good job. That is fine, and the rag newspapers about which Senator Byrne spoke earlier will sell that message for the UK Government and many UK citizens will not be aware of what has been done to their country in their name. I do not think a proper debate took place in the UK about what Brexit actually meant and what the people were voting for but that is done and in the past. We are where we are now.

What really annoys me, as it does everybody in this House, is that the UK Government is taking direct actions that harm our country and people. It has had no regard for the implications that a no-deal or weak Brexit will have on our citizens. That is regrettable because we are close friends and neighbours. I am sure that every Member of this House has family living in England and vice versa. I often feel when I go to England, as I have done on many occasions, that I am not too far from home. There is a connection that is unlike that with any other country. I fear that is changing, which is regrettable, because the UK Government has shown no regard for its closest friends and neighbours here in Ireland. We must make no apology for standing up for our people and country.

Brexit has already happened. There is another message for the UK people in that. The UK Government has sold the message that Brexit has already happened and is done. A lot of people in the UK think it has happened, nothing has changed, that everything is fine and has stayed the same. They will see the changes at the end of the transition period in January when the UK is out of the customs union and Single Market, queues are back at Dover and prices of goods and cars go up.

One thing I would like to put on the record is that I hope that if the UK changes its mind some day and would like to rejoin the European Union, the EU will have its arms open and will tell the UK that it can rejoin on the same terms that applied before it left. The best outcome would be to dispense with Brexit and have the UK back as a member of the EU with all of the agreements that were in place and concessions that had been negotiated over many years of membership still applying. That is our strength. We are not there to get one up on the UK. We do not want to oust or better them, we want a good deal and a good relationship. The best relationship of all would be if the UK remained a member of the Union but, unfortunately, it has made its choice.

I thank every Member of the House who contributed on this motion. I am glad that Seanad Éireann has had an opportunity to debate Brexit because it has been on the back-burner to a certain extent but it is a key issue that we will continue to debate. It is welcome that we had the opportunity to do that at the outset of this term.