COMMENT: We will overcome Brexit challenges

By Minister Paschal Donohoe

SINCE June 23 last year, there has been a lot of talk about what the UK’s departure from the European Union will mean; both for Ireland and the EU. 

First, it’s important to stress that the UK will not be leaving the EU immediately. In fact, this process will take at least two years. In the meantime, there will be no changes to our relationship with the UK, and your rights will remain the same. 

The first thing that will happen is that there will be a complex and sometimes very difficult negotiation period, in which Ireland will be part of the team of 27 countries staying in the EU. 

Ireland has made our priorities for these Brexit negotiations very clear. We want to protect our economy, especially sectors such as agrifood that are heavily reliant on the UK for their business. 

For us to do this, we need the closest possible trading relationship with the UK, something that a number of other EU countries also want. We want to maintain our Common Travel Area with the UK and the invisible border with the North. We want to protect the peace process and ensure all aspects of the Good Friday Agreement are fully respected.  We also want the future of the EU to work best for its citizens and the European economy.

These priorities have been made very clear to every other EU Member State, and to the British as well. Both the EU chief negotiator and the British PM have openly acknowledged that they want to solve the issue of the border on the island of Ireland while protecting the gains of the peace process, and that this must be a key part of whatever deal is negotiated.

One of the ways the EU has supported the peace process is through the PEACE and INTERREG Programmes between Northern Ireland and the border region of Ireland. For more than a quarter of a century the EU has provided significant funding to support the process of peace building and reconciliation in the region.  

As the Irish Minister responsible for the programmes, I travelled to Derry last December where, along with my Northern Ireland counterpart, I visited projects funded by the EU.  The progress that has been made since the Good Friday Agreement in 1998 was really brought home to me when – in the company of a DUP Mayor and a Sinn Fein Minister – I walked across the spectacular EU-funded Peace Bridge that lies at the heart of the city and brings the two communities together.

The Irish Government is determined to see such programmes continue, even after the UK leaves the EU.

With the departure of the UK from the EU will come change, but not all for the worse. There are also some real opportunities for Ireland – as one of only two English-speaking countries in the EU, with the fastest growing economy in the EU in 2016, and as the European HQ of so many multinational firms. 

The negotiating teams are ready. The Government has its priorities set. Information that helps people to understand what is going on is being and will continue to be made available. This won’t be easy. But we have overcome challenges before, and we will do it again with Brexit. 

Paschal Donohoe is the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform.