Brian Stanley (Laois, Sinn Fein)
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87. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the future Border checks on the island of Ireland post Brexit relating specifically to the movement of food and animals; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41604/19]

Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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The Government is working closely with the European Commission on how to avoid a hard border in the case of a “no-deal” Brexit, while also protecting the integrity of the Single Market and Customs Union and Ireland’s place in them. Intensive discussions with the Commission are continuing to find solutions. All options are being discussed within the rules of the Customs Union and Single Market. This includes issues related to food and animal health standards and movements.

Without a Withdrawal Agreement, avoiding a hard border would become more complex and challenging. There are no easy answers, and any solution will be suboptimal compared to the backstop. The Government wants to avoid physical infrastructure at the border, but is also required to take steps to protect the single market.

On 2 October 2019, the UK submitted formal proposals to Brussels on an alternative to ‘the backstop’. The Commission noted that there are still some problems with this proposal, notably with regard to the governance of ‘the backstop’. It stated that we must have a legally operational solution that meets all the objectives of the backstop: preventing a hard border, preserving North-South cooperation and the all-island economy, and protecting the EU's Single Market and Ireland's place in it.