Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 12 December 2017
102. Deputy Micheál Martin asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he will report on the regulatory alignment proposed in the latest draft of the EU-UK deal; if this will result in the exact same rules being applied both north and south of the Border; if not, the areas it will not apply to; if these particular areas are known; and if there is research being done on the areas it will not apply to. [53223/17]
Amharc ar fhreagra103. Deputy Micheál Martin asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he will report on the added wording to the latest EU-UK deal; and if there is change to the substance of the 4 December 2017 draft. [53224/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 102 and 103 together.
It has been the Government’s consistent position that the best possible outcome for Northern Ireland would be for the UK to stay in the Single Market and Customs Union. However, this is ultimately a decision for the UK and, as of now, the UK government’s stated position is that they will leave the Single Market and Customs when leaving the EU.
At the request of the EU and UK Coordinators for the High Level Dialogue on Ireland/Northern Ireland, officials carried out detailed work over October and November to map out areas of co-operation that operate on a North South basis on the island of Ireland and which rely on EU law and policies. The exercise underlined the importance of maintaining full alignment with the rules of the Internal Market and the Customs Union necessary to continue and develop meaningful North South co-operation. Through the provisions of the Good Friday Agreement, North South co-operation has made a hugely important contribution to the improvement of people's lives on this island. We want to ensure that this co-operation can continue in a meaningful way.
In the joint EU-UK report on progress issued last Friday, the UK asserts its commitment to protecting North South co-operation and to avoiding a hard border. The agreement not only provides a guarantee that there will be no hard border in any circumstances, it spells out for the first time how this will be achieved. In the event that it is not possible to resolve the border issue as part of a wider EU-UK future relationship agreement, which has always been the Irish Government’s preference, or through specific solutions, paragraph 49 of the report states out that, “in the absence of agreed solutions, the United Kingdom will maintain full alignment with those rules of the Internal Market and the Customs Union which, now or in the future, support North-South co-operation, the all-island economy and the protection of the 1998 agreement.” It has also been agreed that any agreements put in place will be accompanied by effective mechanisms to ensure implementation and oversight.
The EU and the UK agreed that, in the next phase of the negotiations, work will continue on the detailed arrangements required to give effect to the principles and commitments that have been made. In this regard, the Government will continue to support the EU Taskforce, including its work to protect the broad and varied range of North South co-operation to ensure that its development can continue after the UK’s departure from the EU.
With reference to the Deputy’s question concerning added wording to the EU UK joint report, all of the substance that has been agreed was on the table on Monday last, including the guarantee by the UK on avoiding a hard border and its detailed commitments on how this will be achieved.
