Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
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139. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government the bilateral meetings he has had with his European counterparts outside of Council of Europe meetings, since the UK referendum to leave the EU took place, in which the issue of Brexit and the unique challenges faced by the island of Ireland were discussed, including the name of each European Government ministerial counterpart, the meeting location and the date of each meeting, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2517/17]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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An extensive programme of engagement with all other EU Governments and the EU institutions, including the Commission’s Brexit Negotiations Task Force, is under way. This engagement is being intensified in 2017.

On 18 November last, I attended the North South Ministerial Council meeting in Armagh where a discussion on the implications of the UK Referendum took place. While to date I have not held any bilateral meetings with my European counterparts, the Taoiseach and Ministers will continue to meet and engage with our EU counterparts over the coming weeks to emphasise Ireland’s concerns and to ensure that they are fully reflected in the EU position once negotiations commence.

This activity is reinforced by extensive engagement at diplomatic and official level. The Government is acutely aware of the potential risks and challenges for the Irish economy and will remain fully engaged on this aspect as the negotiations proceed. An important part of our preparations for the Brexit negotiations is ensuring that our particular concerns are heard and understood across Europe and engagement with our EU partners and with the EU institutions is, therefore, critical.

Of course, Ireland will be part of the EU 27 team and looks forward to working with our fellow Member States in delivering the best possible result for Ireland and for the EU. In line with the agreement at EU level, there have been and will be no negotiations with the UK until Article 50 has been triggered.