Low chance of chaotic Brexit... but we’re still not ready – FF

MICHEÁL Martin has said that while the risk of a ‘chaotic Brexit’ remains low, he does not believe Ireland is anywhere near ‘Brexit ready’.

The Fianna Fáil leader launched the criticism of the Government’s Brexit preparedness at his party’s Wolfe Tone Commemoration in Co. Kildare yesterday, and said that we are behind in preparation ‘in all scenarios’.

Mr Martin visited Brussels last week, and said that coming from discussions he had there, he believes ‘there is a determination for there to be a deal by the end of the year’. But he warned: ‘Let noone be in any doubt, Ireland is nowhere near Brexit ready. Of the 6,900 companies who export to the UK, only a quarter have a Brexit plan in place.

‘A critical loan scheme was announced 12 months ago but has not yet been established, let alone awarded any funding. A €300million loan scheme for Brexit adaptations has distributed less than 1% of its funding.’

Mr Martin said the Dutch government had hired and trained more than 1,000 new staff to handle post-Brexit trade. He added: ‘Our Government has only just begun the process of hiring 400 and almost none will be trained and in place by mid next year.’

He also said that we need ‘fewer ministerial road shows and a much greater urgency to reach out to businesses and communities impacted by Brexit to help them meet this challenge’.

However, Business Minister Heather Humphreys disagreed with Mr Martin’s comments, telling RTÉ that ‘there is a lot of work going on’.

And Senator Neale Richmond, Fine Gael’s Brexit spokesman, branded Mr Martin’s ‘dismissiveness of the efforts of thousands of businesses and all State agencies to get Brexit ready’ as ‘snide’.

‘The ongoing road shows are not ministerial; they are the first time any government has brought all State agencies under one roof for businesses to access,’ he added.