Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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76. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade his negotiating plans for Ireland in respect of Brexit negotiations. [19864/17]

Charles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael)
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On 2 May, the Government published a comprehensive document, setting out in detail its approach to the forthcoming negotiations on the withdrawal of the UK from the EU under Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union. This document was drafted with the Department of the Taoiseach and in consultation with all relevant Government Departments.

The document reflects the findings and outcomes of the extensive preparatory work and consultations undertaken to date by the Government at EU level and on the island of Ireland, including through the All-Island Civic Dialogue. It focuses in particular on the withdrawal negotiations, which are anticipated to get underway in the coming weeks. It also looks ahead to the future relationship negotiations and the issues that will need to be addressed in this second phase of the negotiations.

A priority for the Government over recent months has been to ensure that Ireland’s interests – as set out in the comprehensive document – are fully reflected in the EU’s negotiating position. The Government has undertaken an intensive campaign of engagement with EU partners and the EU institutions to ensure our specific concerns were fully recognised. For my part, I have had nearly 100 engagements on Brexit since the referendum with EU partners, including with each of my EU counterparts.

This campaign of engagement has delivered for Ireland. I welcome that the Negotiating Guidelines adopted by the European Council on 29 April and the more detailed negotiating directives adopted by the General Affairs Council on 22 May deliver on the objectives the Government identified in its comprehensive document published earlier this month.

In particular, the EU Guidelines and the directives express the goal of protecting the Good Friday Agreement and the gains of the peace process, including the need for flexible and imaginative solutions to avoid a hard border on the island of Ireland. They also recognise the bilateral agreements and arrangements between the EU and the UK, including the Common Travel Area. Additionally, the directives address the need to take full account of the situation of Irish citizens residing in Northern Ireland who will continue to enjoy rights as EU citizens and the need to address issues arising from Ireland’s unique geographic situation, including the transit of goods to and from Ireland via the UK.

Ireland also fully supports the phased approach that has been adopted by the EU, which foresees that discussions on the future EU-UK relationship will get under way as soon as sufficient progress has been made on the EU’s key priorities under the withdrawal process – notably citizens’ rights, the UK’s financial settlement and border issues, including in relation to Ireland.

My immediate focus – and that of my Government colleagues – will therefore be on working with our EU partners to ensure a positive start to the negotiations with a view to ensuring that swift progress can be made on the withdrawal issues. In this regard, it is also important that the UK comes to the table with an open mind and a constructive approach. This will be vital in ensuring that we can move on to discussing in parallel the future EU-UK relationship, including in relation to trade, as soon as possible.

My Department will continue to play a central role in preparing and supporting these efforts. Given the cross-cutting nature of the EU-UK dossier, a number of Divisions are very closely engaged with this issue, as are our Missions, under the overall direction of the Secretary General. The European Union Division contains a specific team dedicated to the EU-UK negotiations, which will take the lead on the Article 50 process within the framework of the whole-of-government approach to Brexit, which is led by the Department of the Taoiseach. Ireland’s Permanent Representation to the European Union in Brussels will also play a key role. Resources both at home and in our Permanent Representation in Brussels, as well as in our Embassies in London, Paris and Berlin, have been reinforced. We are therefore well placed, both in terms of our preparedness and in terms of our core priorities, for the upcoming negotiations which will be long and complex.