IFA leader's 'cautious welcome' for Brexit deal

Irish Farmers Association president, Joe Healy, has given a cautious welcome to the Brexit deal concluded in Brussels between the EU Commission and the UK Government, but says the real test is the vote in the UK Parliament in Westminster on Saturday.
"If it’s ratified, it will avoid a ‘no deal’ outcome, which would have had severe and immediate consequences for the Irish economy, and the agri sector in particular.
“On the limited formation available, the deal appears to address the very deep concerns about creating a hard border on the island of Ireland. For these reasons, we would hope that this deal will be approved by the UK Parliament,” he said. 
Joe Healy said credit is due to the EU negotiators and the Government, and to the opposition, for standing by Ireland’s interests. However, the reality is that if this deal it ratified it confirms that Britain will be leaving the EU Customs Union and the Single Market.
“Ireland and the UK joined the European Union together in 1973 and today’s agreement is a stepping stone towards a moment in history which will bring massive challenges for Irish farming. The impact has already been felt in the volatility of sterling and the uncertainty in agricultural markets which has hit beef farmers particularly hard.”
 “I am therefore calling on the Government to allocate immediately the agricultural funding they set aside for Brexit to assist beef farmers who have suffered grave losses since May 12th this year and are in dire straits, due to political factors totally outside their control.”
 “While this deal may provide some level of certainty as we head into a standstill transition phase, there is a very difficult negotiation ahead on the future trading relationship between the UK and EU, where no country has more at stake than Ireland. There are legitimate fears that the UK is determined to do new trade deals which would undercut EU food safety and environmental standards in pursuit of a cheap food policy. In this regard, the commitments in relation to the ‘level playing field’ could be significant,” he said. 

“Incoming EU Trade Commissioner Phil Hogan will play a vital role in these negotiations,” he said. 

The president of ICMSA,  Pat McCormack, has said that the Brexit Agreement reached between the EU and UK has to be welcomed and the challenge now must to get this deal approved by the House of Commons and allow a new atmosphere of certainty and positivity to replace the negativity that has developed due partly to Brexit around Irish farming and food.  

Mr McCormack said that after the population of the UK itself, the people most psychologically exhausted and ‘worn down’ by the whole three year-long drama were Irish farmers who, he said, had it on their minds “first thing in the morning and last thing at night and have paid a very heavy price financially to date particularly in the beef sector”.

“Whatever happens now – and we always have to remember that whatever comes out of this hoped-for agreement, it will categorically not be as smooth and seamless as the conditions we have now with the UK as a Member State – we at least will have some idea of the business landscape we’ll be traversing and the agreement will being a level of certainty and stability.    Any certainty, any degree of predictability, is so welcome after these three years of daily confusion and anxiety that we must welcome it – albeit in the knowledge that there is no such thing as a ‘good Brexit’.  

"But ICMSA is convinced that we have to take what good is available and now go forward; we have to take the relief and certainty and, insofar as it’s possible, we have to use it to re-energise our sector and bring some focus to the questions that, perhaps understandably, we have ‘parked’ for the last three years.  Hopefully, this deal will be approved by the House of Commons and if approved, then it will be time to get back to our business and start working again in the knowledge that the worst has been averted," concluded Mr McCormack.