Martin Conway (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I, too, welcome the Minister and commend him on the work he has done, not just in recent weeks but also in recent years, on Brexit. As we all know, Brexit is a serious, tricky and complex issue for Ireland. It challenges Ireland more than any other country. It is a daunting challenge and we are in uncharted waters. We do not know how it will affect us, but we know that it will. It is a problem and a difficulty. Like many other problems our small island has faced over the years, we will deal with it head on.

It is only fair and appropriate to say that this Government and previous Governments have been involved in micromanagement levels of preparation for this day as it approaches. Even if there is no deal, we are as prepared as we could possibly be in light of the work that has been done in the Departments of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Foreign Affairs and the Taoiseach since the awful referendum happened in 2016. We were not behind the bush when it came to realising the seriousness of the situation, the difficulties that it presented to us and the difficulties that it would present to the Irish business community, especially the export community.

I regret the fact that many people did not realise the seriousness of the situation, and still do not. Two or three years ago, people saw this as something that would happen in the distant future as opposed to realising that we are on the eve of something very serious. When it happens, they will wonder why they did not realise it was so serious. Due to the fact that Brexit is one step removed from people, they did not seem to realise it will have a direct impact on their lives. Much of the work that happened across Government for the past two or three years was to try to negate that impact.

People did not consider Brexit an issue in the general election because it did not get their children a mortgage or do A, B or C. Brexit will not put food on the table or ensure that people can buy new cars. Those who have been close to and have monitored the process know that it is an issue. The future effect of Brexit is what has preoccupied the Government for the past three or four years. Trying to protect our citizens in the Brexit future is what has preoccupied the Minister, the former Taoiseach and current Tánaiste and others.

That said, a number of factors have played in our favour, not least that there is a new President-elect in the United States of America who, unlike the man he will succeed, is not in favour of Brexit. That has tilted the balance in favour of Europe in these tricky, complex and detailed negotiations.

To some extent, the pandemic has focused minds because there is now an element within the United Kingdom which realises that it is not really possible to exist as an island. We are a global community and are interconnected. We are better off being properly, appropriately and cohesively interconnected as opposed to what is going to happen soon. Those factors will possibly help in terms of securing a deal.There have been challenges with fisheries in recent times and they are complex. Claiming territorial waters is always difficult. For the past decade, there have been negotiations about fishing quotas Christmas after Christmas and we have always done well. The Minister was part of those negotiations when he was Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, flying over to Brussels a few days before Christmas to try to get the fishing quota deals done, and they were challenging.

In my area of Clare, tourism is our main source of income after agriculture. I am concerned that we will be hit in terms of agriculture, particularly in respect of agricultural exports to the United Kingdom. Nevertheless, I am hopeful that much of the work done over the years to open and develop other markets will help. Many people might not realise that the United Kingdom is one of our principal inbound tourism markets. The number of people who come from the United Kingdom to Ireland for weekend breaks is significant. The city of Dublin has benefited enormously from many people coming from the length and breadth of the United Kingdom for weekend breaks and that has percolated throughout our country, not least in Clare. Significant tourism promotion needs to be conducted to protect that market. There is no reason that it should not develop. We may have difficulties in the next couple of years but when things are bedded down we will, hopefully, see that.

The roll-out of additional embassies and consular offices throughout the world was a clever, appropriate and necessary move. Improving diplomatic relationships goes hand in hand with having the IDA develop economic relationships and trying to get foreign direct investment. One cannot just rock up to a city and get foreign direct investment overnight; one has to build diplomatic relations and get to know the culture in various countries. The budget in that regard was ramped up significantly in recent years and it is money exceptionally well spent.

I do not envy the Minister in his work but he is the right man in the right place to do it. He has the experience, having developed it since 2011, when he took over as Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine. This is a pivotal period in our history. It is only in the future that we will realise how important this period is, and doing it against the backdrop of a pandemic makes it all the more difficult. I wish him well, as does the country. I have no doubt we will emerge from this as a stronger country and nation with, hopefully, a protected economy that we will rebuild not just from a Brexit perspective but also in the aftermath of a pandemic.

Our position in the European Union has been significantly strengthened because of the work that has been done over recent years. That we have had Europe at our back throughout this period of uncertainty is deeply appreciated by many Irish people. I sincerely hope that in the European narrative going forward, a Eurosceptic attitude will never develop in the Irish psyche. We should remember that two European referendums were lost in this country and had to be run again. I hope that type of mentality will not exist in the future and that people will appreciate the benefit that Europe has provided to our people and how it has stood by us in our time of need. I have no doubt we will emerge and go forward stronger, better and more determined as a country and people.