Coveney keeps his cool in UK Brexit crisis
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SIMON Coveney yesterday rejected claims the Government is portraying the draft Brexit deal as a victory.
The Tanaiste was challenged in the Dail on the language being used to describe the agreement between the UK and EU with a suggestion ministers had indulged in triumphalism.
Fianna Fail’s Darragh O’brien said it would be better to remain silent amid the turbulence in Westminster.
In response, Mr Coveney insisted he and the Taoiseach had chosen their words carefully.
However, he added: “We do have an obligation to explain to the Irish people what has been agreed because there are many people out there who are very sceptical that it was possible to get this deal done.
“It is the role of government to explain to people in appropriate language why this deal is no threat to nationalism or unionism in Northern Ireland, why it is no threat to the sovereign integrity of the
United Kingdom.
“Instead, this is a practical compromise on all sides to allow for a managed, sensible Brexit to move forward in a way that protects core Irish interests and ensures we are not collateral damage from an unmanaged Brexit deal that doesn’t take into account the interests of Britain’s neighbours, as well as Britain itself.
“The Irish Government needs to be careful not to be pretending we can influence British politics and not to try to do so publicly either, because we might well find it would have the opposite effect.
“There is a British political system that needs to tease through the detail of this text. That will happen in the coming days and weeks and there’ll be a vote at the end of that.”
Housing spokesman Mr O’brien had told the Dail it was not the time for triumphant language when there was a “sensitive and volatile” situation in the UK.
He added: “That’s irresponsible and I think you should desist from doing that. There’s no triumph in negotiating something that can’t be delivered so we all need to be mature about this.
“I would say further that the time for victory and celebration is when this draft agreement is accepted and ratified by all.
“Every statement being made in Ireland is being scrutinised and we should be aware of that.” During Dail Mr Coveney was asked whether the deal was already doomed, given developments in London.
Insisting he had faith in Theresa May, he said: “Of course there are challenges to selling any package in the United Kingdom and Westminster.
“Many people would say there isn’t a majority for any way forward in the House of Commons and so the British Prime Minister said last night she faces difficult days ahead and I’m sure she does. But she’s resilient and she’s shown a remarkable capacity to get things done in difficult circumstances.
“What we have is a deal and text that follows through on the commitments made and does so in a way that protects Ireland’s core interests now and into the future in a way we can all stand over, I hope.”
During the exchanges in Leinster House, Sinn Fein TD Pearse Doherty criticised the DUP for using “incenquestions, diary, rash and ostentatious rhetoric” in regard to the draft deal and claimed the party represented a minority, “narrow” view in the North, where 56% of people voted Remain.
Mr Coveney replied: “I hope it’s not going to be about a majority versus a minority in Northern Ireland trying to win the argument against each other in the weeks ahead.
“We need to ensure majorities as well as minorities in Northern Ireland are reassured any wording of a legal treaty relating to Brexit is not a threat to them and we can try to protect, where possible, the status quo on this island, where neighbours and people with very different backgrounds and very different ideas and dreams for the future can actually live together, understanding we are protecting the core interests of everybody, which is what we are trying to do here.
“So for anyone to take absolutist
positions has been and continues to be unhelpful in terms of trying to find a way forward.”
Mr Doherty also asked Mr Coveney to publish the Government’s legal advice on the “permanence and certainty” of the border “backstop” position outlined in the draft text.
However, the Tanaiste pointed out the advice was from the EU, not the Government.
As Theresa May fought for her political life at Westminster yesterday, her “dogs dinner” Brexit plan was branded “completely dead in the water”.
The PM insisted MPS would back the deal with Brussels next month but one Whitehall source said there was “almost zero” chance of this happening.
Mrs May’s personal authority took an unprecedented battering with seven senior Tories resigning in protest – including Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab. Mr Raab, who only took over after David Davis quit the post in July, said he could not “in good conscience support the terms proposed for our deal with the EU”. Warring Tory MPS, led by Brexiteer Jacob Rees-mogg, then launched an all-out bid to oust her with a vote of no confidence.
We need to be careful to not pretend we can influence UK politics SIMON COVENEY DUBLIN YESTERDAY
The time for victory and celebration is when agreement is ratified DARRAGH O’BRIEN DUBLIN YESTERDAY
FOR months, Brexit has loomed on the horizon, leaving Europe and the UK unsure as to how things will unfold – and what they will be left with.
The resignations from Theresa May’s government yesterday illustrate that even though the deadline to leave the EU is fast approaching, everything remains up in the air.
Work and pensions secretary Esther Mcvey, a Brexiteer, has said May has failed to “honour the result” of the referendum and as a result, she cut ties.
Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab and Junior Minister Suella Braverman also walked out yesterday, throwing confidence into turmoil.
And they definitely won’t be the only ones to storm out in light of the proposed deal that took hours to even be agreed to by those most loyal to the PM.
May also faces the threat of a no confidence vote from her own backbenchers, which can happen if the threshold of 48 MPS is reached.
Raab was pegged as a crucial figure in May’s attempt to sell her proposed deal to other probrexit Tory MPS, and he said the proposed arrangement to avoid a border with Northern Ireland through a backstop is a “very real threat to the integrity of the United Kingdom”.
May’s planned divorce from the European Union continues to stir up new issues and it’s beginning to feel like nobody is going to be happy with it, regardless of how the cards fall.