Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 24 July 2018
149. Deputy Lisa Chambers asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if the common travel area and all its associated rights will be fully preserved in the event of a no-deal Brexit. [35103/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Common Travel Area is a long-standing arrangement between the UK and Ireland which means Irish citizens can move freely to live, work, and study in the UK on the same basis as UK citizens and vice versa. It is an arrangement that is valued on both islands and the continuation of this arrangement is a stated objective of both the Irish and UK Governments.
The Common Travel Area provides for associated rights and entitlements which enable Irish and UK citizens to move freely between and reside in both jurisdictions. These rights and entitlements include access to employment, healthcare, education, and social benefits, as well as the right to vote in certain elections.
The Common Travel Area predates membership of the EU by both Ireland and the UK and is not dependent on it. The CTA is recognised in EU law by Protocol No. 20 to the Treaty on European Union and the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and this is not changed by the UK’s departure from the EU. In this regard, we welcome Article 2 in the Draft Protocol on Ireland and Northern Ireland which is dedicated to the CTA and states that the UK and Ireland may “continue to make arrangements between themselves relating to the movement of persons between their territories”. This has been marked as green, indicating it has been agreed at negotiator level and is a welcome acknowledgement for the continuation of the CTA, insofar as it relates to the EU-UK negotiations.
However, the maintenance of the CTA remains a bilateral matter between the UK and Ireland. Work is focussed on ensuring that, at a more detailed level, there is a common understanding of the scope of the Common Travel Area and that any requisite steps put in address technical changes or potential legal or operational gaps that may arise due to the UK’s departure from the EU. Work is ongoing both with the UK and domestically to ensure that all necessary provisions are made in both jurisdictions so that the CTA continues to function effectively and to safeguard the entitlement of Irish citizens to access associated rights in the UK, and that of British citizens to do so in Ireland.
There is therefore no reason to expect that a no deal Brexit would affect the operation of the CTA.
