Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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526. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the membership and role of all Brexit related stakeholder engagement groups working with his Department on Brexit issues; the number of times each stakeholder group has met; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38855/17]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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Engagement with stakeholders is an important pillar of the Government’s overall response to Brexit. A major initiative undertaken under the joint leadership of my Department and the Department of the Taoiseach has been the All-Island Civic Dialogue on Brexit, which was established in November 2016. Its inaugural plenary session marked the beginning of a series of public consultations with a broad range of stakeholders. Following on from this, nineteen All-Island Sectorial Dialogues have taken place across the country. The second plenary session held in February 2017 enabled my Department to take stock of the progress of the sectorial dialogues to date. It also provided an opportunity to capture the views of many of those most directly affected from across the island of Ireland. To date, over 1,500 representatives from a range of industry and civil society groups have taken part in the All-Island Civic Dialogue process. A list of participating organisations and groups at the second plenary session in February 2017 is contained in the document All-Island Civic Dialogue: A Compendium, which is available on the Government’s Brexit portal.

The work of Civic Dialogue process to date has reaffirmed the priority issues identified by the Government ahead of the negotiations. The concerns and issues identified across a range of sectors were included in the Government’s comprehensive document “Ireland and the negotiations on the UK’s withdrawal from the European Union: The Government’s Approach”published on 2 May. As Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade with special responsibility for Brexit, I am fully committed to the continuation of this valuable initiative and I am convening the third plenary session of the All-Island Civic Dialogue on 28September.

Additionally, I have decided to establish a Brexit Stakeholder Forum as a means to inform and explain the Government’s position during the Article 50 negotiations on the UK’s withdrawal from the European Union. The Forum will be of particular value as the negotiations enter Phase Two, when parallel discussions are expected to begin on the framework of the future relationship between the EU and the UK.

Membership of this Forum is naturally more limited than that of the All-Island Civic Dialogue, to allow for a more focused and interactive discussion with key players. It may be augmented as required. Its first meeting will take place this week and will include representatives from the British-Irish Chamber of Commerce, Chambers Ireland, European Movement Ireland, the Institute of International and European Affairs, the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, the Irish Exporters’ Association, the Irish Universities Association, IBEC and the North/South Joint Business Council. State agencies will also be present, and, in a personal capacity, some experts on EU issues. As the Deputy is aware, party Brexit spokespersons have also been invited: himself from Fianna Fáil, Brendan Howlin (Labour), David Cullinane (Sinn Féin) and Eamon Ryan (Green Party). The Forum is organised by my Department and other Departments will attend in an observer capacity. The intention is for the Forum to meet every four to six weeks.

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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528. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the Brexit-related research currently being undertaken by his Department; the topics under consideration; the date this research commenced; the expected date for completion and publication in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38887/17]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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Research and analysis by Departments on the impact that Brexit may have across a wide range of policy areas is ongoing and of course involves my own Department both in its co-ordination role and in its own right. Planning for, contributing to and following the EU-UK negotiations requires research on and analysis of very many legal, institutional, and political issues, and is led by the European Union Division in co-operation with the Ireland and United Kingdom and Americas Division, the Legal Division, the Political Division and the Trade Division. Our Permanent Representation in Brussels, and our Embassies in all Member States, send in a constant stream of reports describing and analysing the concerns and priorities of the EU Institutions and our partners. My Department also works closely with the European Commission and European Parliament Offices here in Dublin and with civil society organisations including the Institute for International and European Affairs and European Movement Ireland. With funding from this Department, the IIEA is undertaking research on the future shape of the EU and the new strategic alliances that Ireland will need to develop within the EU after Brexit. The analysis will also consider the macro-economic effects of Brexit and the EU institutional implications of Britain’s withdrawal from the EU. This work will build on the extensive analysis being undertaken by a range of organisations, both in Ireland and further afield and will be presented in a series of research papers over the coming three years.