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Brexit Issues

Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 20 November 2018

Tuesday, 20 November 2018

Questions (118)

James Browne

Question:

118. Deputy James Browne asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he has discussed with his UK counterpart the issue of border checks on trucks originating here and arriving in the UK from Rosslare Europort but plan to travel onwards to another country within the Euopean Union; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47991/18]

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Written answers

The Government’s planning for Brexit has from the start included issues relating to the continued effective use of the UK landbridge, including by trucks originating in Rosslare Europort. This is a priority for the Government, given the importance of the landbridge in getting Irish products, in particular agri-food products, to market on continental Europe. This is an important issue with regard to protecting the competitiveness of our producers and ensuring continued unhampered access to the EU Single Market. A Landbridge Project Group is chaired by my Department and involves all relevant Government Departments, including the Department of Finance, the Revenue Commissioners, the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and the Marine, the Department of Health, the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport and the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation. The Project Group has met four times to date.

Work on is being taken forward in two strands. The first is through the Article 50 negotiations. In the mandate provided to the European Commission by the EU27 in May 2017, it was agreed that the Withdrawal Agreement would take account of Ireland’s unique geographic situation, including the transit of goods (to and from Ireland via the UK).

The importance of maintaining the landbridge has been recognised and agreed through the Protocol on Ireland and Northern Ireland in the draft Withdrawal Agreement which reaffirms the commitment of the UK to facilitate the efficient and timely transit through the UK of goods moving from Ireland to another EU Member State or another country, or vice versa.

To this end, I also welcome the UK’s formal notification to the European Commission of its intention to join the Common Transit Convention. The UK’s accession to the Common Travel Convention will play an important role in ensuring Ireland’s access to other EU Member States via the UK landbridge.

The second strand is our work with the European Commission and other affected Member States (Germany, France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark and Sweden) with a view to preparing EU ports to facilitate the transit of EU products through the UK once it becomes a third country through the use of EU rules on internal transit set out under the Union’s Custom Code. This work is intensifying and good progress is being made.

Relevant Departments have also been tasked by the Government to roll out detailed Action Plans with a view to advancing, as appropriate, the mitigating measures which have been identified in the areas of their responsibility from the planning to the implementation phase. In line with this approach, the Government has already approved a number of key Brexit preparedness measures focused on East-West trade which will also take account of the continued use of the landbridge.

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