Willie Penrose (Longford-Westmeath, Labour)
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272. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he is concerned at the recent survey by Bord Bia which found that some 40% of Irish food and drink exporters expect their sales to decline in the wake of the British exit from the European Union; his contingency plans to mitigate the effects of this on the agrifood sector, given that Irish food and drink exports to the United Kingdom accounted for 41% of total exports in 2015, valued at €4.4 billion; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20317/16]

Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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I fully acknowledge the concerns of the agri-food sector about the potential implications of the UK’s decision to leave the EU. My Department and our agencies, in association with our stakeholders, have been giving careful consideration to this issue for some time, looking at the areas in which the greatest risks may arise and on which we will need to focus when negotiations begin.

The most immediate concerns for agri-food exporters centre on exchange rates. In that regard, the Central Bank of Ireland has pre-established contingency plans to deal with market volatility surrounding the referendum result. The Bank will engage with the Department of Finance and individual financial institutions regarding potential risks. Actions by ECB and other global actors will be monitored closely. In addition, I asked Bord Bia to provide practical guidance to SMEs to assist them in dealing with marketing challenges arising in the short term, and yesterday it announced a number of measures to support food and drink businesses. These measures cover areas such as managing volatility impacts, the provision of consumer and market insight, deepening customer engagement, and extending market reach, with the aim of helping companies maintain their competitiveness.

Aside from currency fluctuations, the main areas in which potential impacts are foreseen are in relation to tariffs and trade, the EU budget, regulations and standards, and customs controls and certification, while complex issues also arise for the fisheries sector.

However, we must remember that our trading relationship with the UK is not altered in any way until the negotiation process that will dictate the terms and conditions of the UK’s departure is completed. In the meantime, and as part of our overall contingency planning, I have established a dedicated unit in my Department to work on all of the issues that I have mentioned, and I have convened a consultative committee of stakeholders to ensure a full exchange of information as the negotiations proceed. The Department will also continue to feed into the central Contingency Framework being co-ordinated by the Department of the Taoiseach.