My colleague, the Minister for Health, is leading the health sector's response to Brexit. This includes the key priority of ensuring the continued supply of medicines and medical devices post-Brexit. The Department of Health and its agencies have published comprehensive details about the work undertaken in relation to this issue, which can be found in Chapter 24 of the Brexit Contingency Action Plan Update.
My Department has examined a broad spectrum of Brexit-related issues affecting business in Ireland. The agencies of the Department are also contributing to our efforts to mitigate any potential disruption to supply chains. The agencies continue to deliver as well a broad range of Brexit supports to support companies, build commercial resilience and to maintain and increase export levels.
In the pharmaceutical and life sciences sectors, exports to the United Kingdom account for approximately 6% of total exports. For IDA client companies, the continued functioning of the UK land bridge also remains important for the transport of final and intermediate products further afield. The use of the land bridge varies by product type; for example, the high-value, low-weight nature of final pharmaceutical products makes air transport a more logical choice relative to lower value, heavier products.
The work of the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport therefore remains important in this context, as is the engagement the Government has had with other EU Member States on minimising disruption to the land bridge. The Government will continue, in the time ahead, to engage with key stakeholders and inform businesses - whether those involved in medicines production or otherwise - on how best to prepare for Brexit.
The issue of preserving supply chains of medicine and medical devices is also, of course, particularly important in the context of COVID-19. The Government has engaged extensively with both the British Government and the Northern Ireland Executive on our response to the crisis, with the intention of delivering the best outcomes for all the people of the island. In April, a Memorandum of Understanding was formally agreed between the Irish Government and the Northern Ireland Executive and senior officials from both sides remain in active dialogue on our collective response.
