Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire
Cork South-Central · Sinn Féin · Ireland
“That is important and the Minister and I share that view, much as we disagree on how it is not right to get rid of the triple lock. We have made that very clear and we think there is scope to deploy on peacekeeping missions elsewhere.”
“As I probably will not get more questions and it is my last contribution before the recess, I wish to take the opportunity to thank the staff of this institution and the Ceann Comhairle's office, who serve us so well.”
“We have all probably been guilty of the offence of going over time at different stages, I am sure. Despite our disagreements in relation to the triple lock, I think the Minister and I agree that peacekeeping missions are important.”
“In the context of the previous question, I submitted another question that was ruled out of order, which is fair enough. I probably did not word my question as precisely as Deputy Gibney worded hers. I record my concern about legal representation in that regard. It is important to say that. This question relates to another welfare issue.”
“The Minister said that she is not pushing anybody to the courts. I am not a doctor and cannot make a clinical decision, but if people suffered negative health outcomes that they believe have a connection to their clinical exposure, and they have never taken a case, how precisely is the Government going to help them?”
“The Minister talks about the need to ensure that Defence Forces personnel have the ability to deploy internationally and are not prevented from participating in rescue missions. I have no problem at all with head No. 7. Actually, most of the legislation is fine. It is just head No.”
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“I invite the Minister to comment because I have heard him and some of his colleagues attempt to make mischief with Sinn Féin's analysis of the European Union. It is not terribly complicated: it is possible to be in an organisation and to criticise it. It is possible to retain the view that Ireland should be in the EU and to say that things could go better, for example, in terms of foreign policy or the balance between sovereignty and international co-operation. It is not terribly complicated. Perhaps the next time the Minister of State has a debate with a Sinn Féin representative, he might consider that it is not such a complex position. In fact, I suspect it is a view shared by the majority of the Irish public. We are for a European Union that works better for the people of Ireland and the people of Europe.”
“We mark Europe Day today, which reflects the history of and how the European Union came to be, and the very significant role it has played in Irish politics and history. We reflect on the positive elements of our relationship with the European Union as well as the areas of concern that require to be addressed. It is Sinn Féin's view and policy that Ireland's place is in the EU, but it is also our view - I see the Minister of State, Deputy Thomas Byrne, smiling.”
“The Minister can multiply that by any amount for the children who do not have an appropriate school place, who are in a special class when they should be in a special school or are in mainstream when they should be in a special class, or who are at home when they should be in a special school. It is a profound failure of these children. The problem continues to escalate. While progress in respect of Carrignavar is welcome, there is still a huge amount needed in Cork.”
“Every single year we seem to be in this place where TDs from every part of the country are bringing forward examples of children and families who do not know where they are going. The anxiety, stress and worry that this causes for parents are enormous. They have fear about the impact on their children's potential to achieve the best they can in their lives and reach their full potential. I mean that in the broadest possible sense. Education needs to be about ensuring every child reaches their full potential, no matter what that may be. So much of education now is about careers, opportunities and all that and that is important. However, this is about ensuring children can reach their full potential. I referred to 13 children who do not have a school place at all.”
“What parents will have heard from the Minister in her response is a lot of reasonableness and trying to empathise with the situation. I suppose that is better than denying there is a problem. The reality for parents on the ground is that reasonable words will not put a single child inside the door of a school. I am dealing with the families of 13 children who do not have a place for this autumn. I was contacted by a parent just last night. One of the things I cannot understand is how we have this debate every year. Every March, April and into May we are talking about this. For neurotypical children in most parts of the county it is not a problem and it carries on, although there are many parts of the education system that could be better for them.”
“I cannot see into the future. The Minister says we need to wait for the report. Perhaps it is the case that she will, once she receives the report, do everything right. However, my experience very often in this place is that a Minister says, "We will wait for the report and we will see", and the actions that come after that can be very underwhelming and do not get to the root task or the root issue at hand. Obviously, I cannot see into the future; I do not know if that will be the case. However, I would caution against that. This is very significant, very serious stuff and it underlines serious flaws in terms of Children's Health Ireland. Our concern is that children are suffering on account of it.”
“I appreciate the points the Minister has made about waiting for the report and so on, but the percentages of surgeries that were not necessary - 79% at Cappagh and 60% at Temple Street - are so high it hardly bears thinking about. We would be concerned, I think, if that was 30%. If any operation were found not to be necessary, you would raise a question about it. Well over the majority of operations in those two locations were unnecessary. That is a huge concern and it falls once again into the questions that remain with Children's Health Ireland. At this stage trust, it is fair to say, has been shattered. It has been completely lost. We in Sinn Féin do not have confidence in the board of Children's Health Ireland and, in our view, there is a need for a new board. These are revelations of the utmost seriousness.”
“Tacaím leis an rún agus tréaslaím leis an Teachta Cullinane as an méid atá déanta aige. Is léir ón méid a tuairiscíodh nach raibh aon ghá le líon an-suntasach na n-obráidí seo agus go mbeadh impleachtaí fadtéarmacha agus dáiríre do na leanaí atá i gceist. The most common Irish phrase to describe an operation is "dul faoi scian", which is literally to say "to go under the knife". Whether or not that is always the most appropriate phrase, what it conveys is the fact that it is not something anybody does lightly. In the incidences we are talking about, some of these children are very young, and I think any of us would shudder at the thought of children being exposed to very serious, very significant operations that were not necessary.”
“Most of all, will he give the commitment to listen to those tenants who are potentially facing homelessness, some of whom had proceeded quite a distance in progressing this scheme, only to see the trapdoor close it off? Will the Taoiseach commit to restoring funding and reopening the tenant in situ scheme for these families?”
“The Taoiseach will be aware that there is a special emergency meeting of Cork City Council tonight to discuss the closing-off of the tenant in situ scheme. It is a scheme that allows people who are on the housing list and are facing eviction to be housed by the council with the council buying the property. The tenant in situ scheme prevented 100 children from becoming homeless last year in Cork city alone. It is a no-brainer of a scheme. It is to the benefit of landlords who wish to sell, to the council and, most of all, to the tenants who are potentially facing eviction getting their forever home. The decision to close off this scheme is cruel and short-sighted. Will the Taoiseach give the commitment that he will listen to the voices of the representatives of the people of Cork with regard to tonight's Cork City Council meeting?”
“The reality is that these issues relating to infrastructure have been around for years and they have not been addressed. We hear the talk time and again that we are going to invest in infrastructure. It has not happened and it has left us vulnerable.”
“I echo the call made by Deputy Doherty in relation to a sector analysis. We also know what companies are exporting to the US. It is possible to evaluate who is doing the exporting and make sure we are meeting their needs and that we are reacting to that. The fourth issue relates to infrastructure. Along with my colleagues, I have been meeting representatives from the key organisations in pharmaceuticals. I listened to the Minister and the Tánaiste talking about careful management of our economy. Even aside from the whole issue of bike sheds and event centres, we spend so much on things such as HAP because we failed to invest in social housing. We talk about the huge success of pharmaceuticals in Cork. The next huge industry for Cork could be floating offshore wind. We do not have the electrical grid to support that.”
“I would be concerned that any actions in terms of a knee-jerk rush to retaliatory tariffs will have clear implications for Irish workers and for Irish citizens as regards costs. We cannot very well argue that what Trump is doing is profoundly damaging to the American economy - and it is - and then do the same thing to our own economy with all the implications for workers and businesses. There should be no knee-jerk reaction. Any actions the EU takes must have a clear plan, a clear objective and need to be clear-sighted in terms of what they intend to achieve. The second issue relates to diversification. We have become far too reliant on a small number of markets. We have failed to build up our own domestic economy. That is a point that Sinn Féin has been making for many years. The third issue relates to supports.”
“We must use our voice to the greatest extent possible. I raised the issue in early March regarding the dairy industry and the Irish distilled drinks industry. It is welcome that it appears they are not included at this point in time but pressure must continue. It is clear the agri-food industry is in the crosshairs of the American Administration. I note that some of the language on this has varied in recent weeks. Some of the language from Government representatives has spoken of the need to step back and evaluate the situation. I do not believe that was the Government's first instinct; the first instinct was to ensure we were centrally part of any response from Europe, without necessarily offering a critical voice. If the Government is taking on board what we and others have said, including industry voices, that is welcome.”
“Right up and down the country, there will be significant concern about people's futures and jobs, about how all these high-level discussions and about how countries are exchanging tariffs and the tit-for-tat that goes on. What is that going to mean for them and their families? People will want to hear what the Irish Government is going to do and what we can control here. In my view and evaluation, Ireland has been left uniquely vulnerable due to the policies of successive governments that have relied excessively on tax incentives and have failed to invest in our infrastructure or diversify. That is a problem. As I have been saying since February, four primary areas need to be addressed. First, we need to use our voice at a European level to ensure the interests of Irish workers, business and the economy.”
“Those who are on the margins are likely to be most affected when they look at their trolley of goods in the supermarket and it is workers who will face the consequences if we see lay-offs or a slowdown in investments. It is undoubtedly a very worrying time. It is important to have cool heads but a clear eye. We cannot and certainly should not panic but nor can we underestimate the threats faced. We must take them seriously. There are many workers up and down the country. In my own constituency in Cork, there is a significant number of jobs in pharmaceuticals, life sciences and different sorts of manufacturing connected to the US economy or US business.”
“Tá an plean atá ag Uachtarán Mheiriceá, Donald Trump, gan loighic, gan chiall, gan phlean agus le himpleachtaí an-dainséarach agus an-dáiríre do mhuintir Mheiriceá sa chéad áit, ach do phobail thar timpeall an domhain freisin. The imposition of tariffs by President Trump are illogical, arbitrary and, in many respects, without any basis in reality in respect of talking about retaliatory measures without any evidential basis. Most importantly and fundamentally, it will have serious negative consequences for citizens in America and across the world. Unfortunately, as so often is the case, it will be the ordinary workers who will first see the implications if inflation rises.”
“Just because policing is fluid and moves from station to station, if there are fewer units, and that is fundamentally what we are talking about, and four units are reduced to two with one unit covering an area with 50,000 or 60,000 people, which is effectively the size of a small county, at night, that is not good enough. I would be concerned that there are going to be situations where gardaí will not be able to respond to two serious incidents that happen within their unit area, which is effectively two station areas, at the same time. That is the concern that people have. The Garda Commissioner needs to take this seriously and I urge the Minister for Justice to take it up with him.”
“I am concerned that the number of gardaí this year will potentially decrease because of retirements and that needs to be addressed. Not policing on a station basis and ensuring policing is delivered by all resources came up at a community safety meeting recently. The amount of resource keeps getting thinner and thinner, as was the case when there were units in Carrigaline and Douglas. If the car in Carrigaline was busy responding to an incident, for example, in Crosshaven, the car from Douglas would come up. If there is now only one car between them, and if that car is responding to an incident, then a car has to attend from somewhere else. There is no miracle of the loaves and fishes here.”
“I appreciate that. I will make a couple of points and I hope the Minister of State will take as much of this as possible back to the Minister. I welcome the fact that the Minister was in Cork recently. I understand he also met the chamber of commerce and that is a good thing. It is important that the Commissioner meets with public representatives in Cork. The business organisations in Cork make the point that we are all very keen for the city centre to be a place in which people can live, socialise and work. One of the issues for business organisations and for the people of Cork as a whole is the Garda presence in the city centre. It is coming up at that level. I hope that the Minister of State listened to that very carefully. There is a wider issue with recruitment to An Garda Síochána as a whole.”
“What is actually happening is that the Garda numbers are falling back. The Minister of State is going to reply that the Garda Commissioner has responsibility for this. However, I would urge him to listen. Dublin undoubtedly has policing challenges that need to be responded to. The Government needs to ensure, and I am sure the Minister of State will agree with this, that the rest of the country, and I am speaking for Cork, needs to get a fair shake. We are not getting a fair shake. It is leading to this very serious reduction in service. People are concerned about the implications for their communities.”
“The Minister of State lives not too far away from Cork. I am sure he knows some of these places and has a sense of how big they are. Douglas and Carrigaline, for example, are two places that have two, what should be substantial Garda stations, are being combined. For half of the month the Garda members are sent to Douglas and for half the month they are sent to Carrigaline. Carrigaline has almost 20,000 people in itself and probably 30,000 if the outlying area is taken in. Douglas has approximately 40,000 people. Similarly, Ballincollig has probably 30,000 in the outlying area and Bishopstown has 15,000 or something like that. These are huge areas. We are talking about one unit being responsible for Bishopstown, Ballincollig, Carrigaline and Douglas. There is significant concern. These are big areas with a growing population.”
“In recent months, we have had some serious issues relating to arson, serious assaults and public order issues. We have a situation now where the city centre Anglesea Street Garda station, which is the largest Garda station and the divisional headquarters, was reduced by 26 gardaí in 2024. This meant the main Garda station - the biggest Garda station in Cork city - lost one garda a fortnight in 2024. The Minister of State will agree that is a very serious situation. The city division as a whole has seen such pressure on resources that Garda management has come to a decision that four Garda stations are effectively going to be combined into two. The Bishopstown and Ballincollig units are effectively going to function as one unit and Carrigaline and Douglas are going to function as one unit.”
“It is important to make the point. I will set the context first. The small numbers coming to the Cork city division from Templemore from each cohort has been a source of significant contention in Cork for a considerable number of years. On some occasions it has been as little as one, on others two or three and sometimes it has been none. On one recent occasion there was an increase comprising 11 individuals, as against the 96 members who went to the Dublin division. In the most extreme example I came across, from December 2023, 115 gardaí went to the Dublin division while only one came to the Cork city division. I am aware Cork city is smaller than Dublin city but it is not 115 times smaller than Dublin city by any manner or means. We have challenges in the city.”
“I will raise a point of order. I say this with the greatest respect for the Minister of State, Deputy Healy-Rae, and it is not any reflection on him. He is doing the job he has been asked to do but it was the custom - I acknowledge this is the general responsibility of the Office of the Ceann Comhairle - that where a Minister or Minister of State from the relevant Department was not available, the Deputy would be asked if he or she wanted to proceed. The first I learned of someone from the relevant Department not being available to take this question was now, as I stand here. That is not right and I might have decided to postpone. I would like this to be conveyed to the Ceann Comhairle.”
“From talking to youth diversion project workers, they are prevented from working with young people over the age of 18. This is not the case when referring, and young people obviously need to face full criminal responsibility for any actions, but the point is there should be further scope to work with people who have been through the projects and reached the age of 18, who are trying to get jobs or enter further education and training, to support them in getting employment and so on.”
“In the Cork city division, Garda units are being merged, as they are under such pressure because there have been so many retirements. Those gardaí are not being replaced and Cork is not getting a fair share of the gardaí coming out of Templemore. I appreciate this is a national problem but Cork is not getting anywhere near enough in the context of the population there. What happens in these situations where there is a shortage of Garda numbers? Community gardaí will inevitably be pulled into front-line policing and core unit work, which is crucially important. However, if community policing is being sacrificed, that preventative work, the relationship and trust built up with young people, and that proactive work in preventing crime suffers significantly. I am very concerned by the implications the lack of Garda resources will have.”
“This is a crucially important area. When it is properly supported, the difference it makes is profound. I have seen in the community where I live the difference it makes when there is a good community garda and a good youth diversion project, and what it achieves in respect of the trust and relationship between the young people in an area, a community garda and a youth diversion project. Unfortunately, the pressure Garda numbers are under means this will be significantly undermined. We have a situation that was reported recently where two stations, Carrigaline and Douglas, that previously had independent Garda units will have to merge those units. These are two areas with more than 30,000 people where the Garda will have to merge these units because of the personnel shortage that exists. That is replicated in Ballincollig and Bishopstown.”
“I thought it was two and a half minutes. I will finish on this point. We are talking about minimum house prices of between €310,000 and €326,000 and maximum prices of €365,000. For people who are on a single income of €40,000, €50,000 or €60,000 and do not qualify for social housing, it is still out of reach for those people.”
“I will briefly make a point on affordable accommodation, so-called affordable schemes and some of the schemes we have seen come down the track. A scheme was outlined by Cork City Council in recent weeks. While I welcome any progress in terms of a roof over people’s heads, for the people who are frozen out of social housing and cannot get an adequate mortgage, there really is still no option for them. We are talking about minimum house prices of-----”
“The only conclusion I can draw is that in its heart of hearts, the Government believes that the housing crisis is exaggerated or is not as severe as people in the House are saying it is. The facts speak for themselves. We have record numbers of people homeless. What kind of situation is it that - I am not even sure I blame the media – the record is broken every month and it is hardly a major story? It has become so normalised to break the record for homelessness that it barely registers in the public’s imagination. That is the extent to which the Government and the previous Government have succeeded in normalising homelessness. In my opinion, there has never been the emergency response that is needed. It needs to begin now.”
“When the Minister's predecessor entered office, there was a debate about whether there was a housing crisis. Ultimately, he accepted that there was a housing crisis. In truth, we have had a housing crisis and a housing emergency for seven or eight years, maybe longer, but we have never had an emergency response. The Minister may protest about that, but, as a society, we have had emergency responses in respect of a number of policy areas in recent years - in many instances, these were warranted - but nothing similar has happened in terms of housing. The Government's approach has been to hope that business as usual will resolve the housing crisis. There has been no radical shift and no significant emergency response.”
“Some progress has been made in some markets, but the truth is that there are many markets we could be exporting a great deal more to that we are not, and we need to hear an outline of the strategy as to how that will be attacked.”
“We are obviously not in a position to control precisely what Donald Trump will do, but there are things, coming off the back of this, that we can do on a simple, practical level. It is known to us which companies are exporting to the United States. That is information we have. It seems to me that it is possible that the State contacts all those companies off the back of this and identifies from discussions with them precisely what is needed in terms of supports. It seems obvious that there will be a need for mitigation measures and supports of the kind that were seen during Brexit for businesses. Obviously, that will have to be tailored off the back of whatever announcements are made, but what is the level of preparations that have been made? It remains the case that Irish exports are very concentrated in the English-speaking world.”
“Obviously, a significant part of this, and something that could, depending on the sector that people are in, have as much an impact on Irish workers and Irish jobs as the American tariffs, will be the potential for retaliatory action by the European Union. I understand that the process led by the Commission invited member states to submit their observations and lists, for want of a better word, in terms of the key industries and sectors that they would be concerned about and outlining their view of how best to proceed with retaliatory tariffs. I expect that the Minister has submitted that. Will that be published as regards outlining what precisely the ask of the Irish Government of the European Commission was in terms of what sectors we are focused on? I ask the Minister to respond on that at this point.”
“Thank you, a Cheann Comhairle. I appreciate that. I was listening to the debate on a similar matter between the Tánaiste and Deputy Smith. I do not think there is any desire for histrionics or panic anywhere in the Chamber, but we could be facing a sobering situation tomorrow, and it is no exaggeration to say that there are workers who have been listening to the media over the last few days in multinational companies, particularly American companies, right across Ireland who are very concerned. It is vitally important we have a very carefully and comprehensively thought through response.”
“I do not really have any further questions but I take the opportunity again to reject the statements that have been made by President Trump about President Zelenskyy. He is no dictator by any manner of means. The authoritarian here is Vladimir Putin and it is important to recognise the clear fact that the Ukrainians are serious about peace but it has to be on the basis of a just and sustainable peace and it needs to ensure Ukraine itself is at the table and indeed, partners in Europe. I have no further questions but I put that in the Official Report.”
“It certainly appears as though Vladimir Putin is using the cover of whatever desire exists internationally and which has been spoken about at length by the US President on peace, to buy time. Even the commitments that have supposedly been agreed have been undermined by attacks on energy infrastructure and civilian infrastructure of the kind that was meant to be prevented. It is not difficult to be somewhat cynical about the attitude towards peace of Vladimir Putin. At this point, various parties, including the United States, may be inclined to give a certain amount of latitude but there may come a time when the issue of sanctions and further sanctions on Russia needs to be considered. Has there been discussion on further sanctions at a European level?”
“Since we last had questions here, we had the third anniversary of the vicious war of aggression by Russia, under Vladimir Putin, against Ukraine. It represents the largest land conflict and greatest displacement of people in Europe for nearly 80 years. Progress towards a ceasefire has been extremely slow. While any progress is obviously welcome, it is extremely slow and seems to be consistently undermined by one of the parties and so I invite the Tánaiste to make a statement on that matter.”
“I appreciate that. If it were as simple as whether it is a Government or Opposition Bill, this might be a less contentious debate, but the reality is that there is a difference in substance, one that has never really been justified. I do not know whether the Tánaiste wants to take the opportunity to justify the distinction between goods and services at this juncture. I invite the Tánaiste to remark on the scenes outside the Dáil yesterday involving Mothers Against Genocide and particularly on what is reported to have occurred afterwards, namely, strip-searching and, in one instance, cavity-searching. I am aware that a complaint has gone to the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission, GSOC. It is very worrying and I invite the Tánaiste’s comments on it because it is something we do not want to see.”
“It now seems the Government has changed its position in terms of substance and no longer believes it is necessary to ban services. Whatever of that, and we can discuss this more, commitments were given - or so it was reported - to groups in the United States that this Bill has been shelved . What is the timescale for the progress of the Government Bill? The Bill that is already on the Order Paper should be proceeded with. What is the timescale we have?”
“It is vitally important the international community uses every lever possible to put pressure on for the resumption of the ceasefire, to stop the hostilities, and for the release of the hostages. I suppose we are back to this issue time and again. Unfortunately, we are back to dealing with the consequences of the Israeli Government feeling as if it can act with impunity. That is why the occupied territories Bill matters. It is about ensuring international law applies. Too often the Israeli Government is flouting international law very significantly, obviously in Gaza and the West Bank currently. Time and again the position of the Government seems to have been that these are issues of technical difficulties and so on. That seems to have ultimately disappeared.”
“As these are questions for the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Deputy Simon Harris, it is an appropriate time to extend our sympathies and our solidarity to the people of Myanmar and Thailand in the context of what they are currently experiencing. It is a real catastrophe and there is huge human suffering. The question I bring to the Minister is the same question I brought to him six weeks ago during our previous session, and it relates to the occupied territories Bill. In the interim, unfortunately, the ceasefire that held at that stage is no longer. Hundreds of people, if not more, have died. It is important that Ireland takes a strong stand on that.”
“At this stage, while the storm is not completely out of our memory and while the costs arising from it are still being faced, and not only for clubs and organisations in my constituency, I urge the Minister to encourage the other Department to open a scheme to ensure that organisations which saw those kinds of costs can be fairly compensated.”
“I could be wrong about this, and perhaps the Minister will tell me I am wrong, but it is hard to imagine that whenever a scheme comes to pass, in a year, a year and a half or whenever it is, that clubs and organisations that faced significant costs due to Storm Éowyn, for which they had to fundraise using energy they could have put into other things, will be able to seek compensation after the fact at some point in the future. That seems unlikely. It was very disappointing that the Department of enterprise did not open a scheme when it had every ability to do so.”
“The response we keep getting is that there is a programme for Government commitment to look at a scheme. That frustrates me for a number of reasons. First, a scheme was opened for sports clubs, community organisations and business in the aftermath of Storm Babet. There was no need for legislation at that stage. I do not understand the delays now unless there is just a desire not to act. It seems hard to imagine the commitment in the programme for Government being implemented.”
“I commend the motion brought forward by Deputy O'Reilly. The point has been clearly made that there is great frustration at the rate of payout under the humanitarian assistance scheme. In my county of Cork, of the 102 claims made, only 19 were paid out, which is a similar rate to the rest of the country. For those affected, it is far too slow and a cause of great frustration. There are issues in terms of people making claims and not being properly remunerated. A point I have made before is the need for compensation for clubs, businesses, sporting organisations and community groups. I raised this issue because a number of clubs in my constituency, including Everton AFC and Ballyphehane GAA Club, had goalpost nets, dugouts and buildings damaged by the storm.”
“That is correct. Any Member is entitled to move an amendment to the Order of Business under the Standing Orders supposedly adopted by this Dáil. I wish to propose an amendment to the Order of Business. It relates to the point made by Deputy O'Callaghan regarding the significant threats we face in terms of trade, the tariffs and the developments which may take place this week, particularly on foot of President Trump's announcement tomorrow. I wish to propose that No. 2 of Thursday's business is amended to include statements on tariffs and global trade, subsequent to the conclusion of the statements on diverting young people from criminal activity.”
“I am, and the Clerk can confirm. Under Standing Order 35(3), "Any member may propose an amendment to the motion for the adoption of the arrangements for the week’s business: Provided that ..." they provide adequate detail. I wish to propose-----”
“The Government must ensure that the European strategy on tariffs, in terms of retaliatory actions, safeguards to the greatest extent possible the sectors that are important to us here in Ireland. That is food, drink, pharmaceuticals and life sciences, tech, financial services and aircraft leasing. We must continue to find new markets. We must look at areas such as south-east Asia and also countries that have already been affected by tariffs, including Canada and Mexico. That is something that has been talked about for a long time, but requires an enhanced approach. We must begin preparation of a package of supports for industries and businesses that will be affected. That was part of the preparations for Brexit. There are lessons to be learned. There were good elements and there were elements that could be improved on.”