Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 15 September 2020
870. Deputy Cathal Berry asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the way in which €5 billion Brexit Reserve Fund will be distributed within the EU and within Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24367/20]
View answerI welcome the agreement reached in July on the Multiannual Financial Framework, which included a €5 billion Brexit Adjustment Reserve for those Member States and sectors most affected by Brexit. This is a new Reserve, and the particulars of how it will be distributed will be agreed after the Commission has presented its proposal for the Reserve by November 2020.
It is important to recognise the disproportionate impact Brexit will have on Ireland, and especially on the Irish agrifood sector. We exported more than €1 billion worth of beef, and more than €1 billion of dairy products, to the UK in 2019. Based on the tariff schedule currently published by the UK, the tariffs that would be imposed on that trade on 1 January 2021 if there is no FTA agreed between the EU and the UK, and the customs and regulatory costs that will apply, whether there is an FTA or not, will have a significant impact on that trade.
My Department has ensured that financial and budgetary measures have been put in place to help the agri-food and fisheries sectors to deal with the Brexit challenges they have faced to date. These measures were also aimed at enhancing competitiveness, and market and product diversification. The Government's Brexit Readiness Action Plan makes it clear that further measures to support businesses and affected sectors will be considered in the coming months.
The Brexit Adjustment Reserve will be an important additional support for those adjusting to the new reality of trading with the UK as a third country. Every effort will be made to ensure that the agrifood sector gets an allocation from this Reserve that is commensurate with the impact on the sector.
