No deal on Brexit puts 40,000 jobs at risk – Donohoe
Move would heap more pressure on May
A NO-DEAL Brexit will result in the loss of 40,000 Irish jobs and severely hit exporters and the agri-food sector, the Finance Minister has warned.
As British Prime Minister Theresa May prepares to publish her latest Brexit plan today, Paschal Donohoe painted a stark picture of a “cliff-edge scenario”.
The minister said unless the EU and Britain can reach agreement in the coming months, it will result in significant job losses, new customs restrictions, market volatility and disruption on trade across the Irish Sea.
“The level of employment in Ireland would be 2pc lower, with the unemployment rate nearly 2pc higher,” he said.
This “material and real impact” would hit Ireland harder than other EU countries, he said, adding the agri-food, manufacturing, and tourism sectors would be especially vulnerable.
Officials in London examining a ‘no deal’ scenario fear needing to acquire thousands of electricity generators at short notice to put on barges in the Irish Sea so the lights can be kept on in Northern Ireland.
DONALD Trump could voice support for a hard Brexit during his UK visit, allies of the president have predicted in a move that would pile pressure on Theresa May.
Sources close to Mr Trump said he was a supporter of a clean break with Brussels and may say so publicly if asked.
It raises the prospect that Mr Trump could criticise Mrs May’s “Chequers plan” which triggered the resignations of David Davis and Boris Johnson.
Any supportive comments from the president would likely be jumped on by Eurosceptic rebels seeking to force Mrs May to abandon the proposals.
Mr Trump flies to Britain this afternoon for his first visit since becoming president 18 months ago. He will attend a black-tie dinner tonight at Blenheim Palace and tomorrow meet Mrs May for talks at Chequers and later Queen Elizabeth for tea at Windsor Castle.
Mrs May’s Chequers plan, in which Britain would match EU rules for goods and adopt a “mobility framework” for some EU workers, is a softer Brexit than previously outlined.
Mr Trump is an avid supporter of Brexit, seeing the June 2016 referendum result as foreshadowing the anti-establishment wave that swept him to power later that year.
One former senior White House source said that Mr Trump was a supporter of a hard Brexit and predicted he could make his stance clear at the Blenheim Palace dinner.
Another close friend said: “Trump supported Brexit and liked the idea of Britain being independent and not owned by the EU. He has a general distaste for the EU. He thinks Germany secretly controls it.”
A third Trump ally based in Britain predicted: “[He] is going to express disappointment that the British government is not going to be in a position to negotiate a trade deal with the United States.”
All eyes will be on Mr Trump to see whether he offers public support for Mrs May’s leadership.
He said the UK was in “turmoil” before flying into Europe on Tuesday and suggested his UK visit would be harder than his forthcoming summit with Vladimir Putin, the Russian president.
Mr Trump also suggested he could call his “friend” Boris Johnson, the former foreign secretary, during the trip. Woody Johnson, the US ambassador to the UK, did not rule out that meeting.
Speaking ahead of his visit, Mrs May said that the UK and the US would remain the strongest of allies after Brexit.
“When we leave the European Union, we will begin to chart a new course for Britain... and our global alliances will be stronger than ever,” she said.
She wants to use the meeting with Mr Trump to set how closely the UK works with the US across defence, security and foreign policy.
Yesterday Mrs May told Nato leaders Western countries must stick together to fight the threat from Russia. She urged Mr Trump to raise the case of the Salisbury nerve agent poisoning with Mr Putin when the pair meet on Monday. Her comments will be seen as an attempt to ensure that Mr Trump’s four -day visit to the UK – which starts today – is not overshadowed by the US/Russia summit.
At a Nato summit dinner in Brussels Mrs May warned that Russia was engaged in a pattern of behaviour, such as the Salisbury nerve agent attack, which was intended to “undermine our democracies and damage our interests around the world”. (© Daily Telegraph, London)