Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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263. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the preparations made in his Department in the event of no agreement being reached between the United Kingdom and the European Union on the terms of the UK's exit from the EU; if such preparations involve the drawing up of detailed and specific contingency plans in the event of a hard Brexit and a trade regime based on WTO tariffs; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [48781/17]

Charles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael)
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As Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade with special responsibility for Brexit, Minister Coveney has responsibility for coordinating the whole-of-Government response to Brexit. In this capacity, he is working closely with his colleagues across Government to address the many challenges resulting from Brexit. This cooperation also involves the relevant State Agencies.

Work at Cabinet level is being prepared through cross-Departmental coordination structures. These represent a frequent and active channel through which all relevant Departments are providing their research, analysis and overall policy input to the Government's wider response to Brexit, including its priorities for the ongoing Article 50 negotiations between the EU and the UK.

As the outcome of the negotiations is not yet known, an important focus of the planning and preparation being undertaken through these structures is on deepening the Government's analysis and understanding of the exact consequences of a range of different possible scenarios. This represents an intensification of efforts to build on the Government's contingency planning.

Within my own Department, analysis and research on the possible impacts of the UK departure from the EU commenced in early 2016. A Working Group of senior officials was established to manage the Department's response and to carry out a risk analysis of the UK's potential departure, taking into account engagement with relevant justice sector agencies and other stakeholders. This work is ongoing and evolving.