On Wednesday, Fianna Fáil’s Lisa Chambers raised concerns in the Dáil that the exposure of the Irish beef sector to a hard Brexit was being used by the UK to twist Ireland’s arm on the backstop.
Tánaiste Simon Coveney denied this was the case saying: “There were some unfortunate headlines in the Irish media last week around trade wars on beef and using that sector as a way of putting pressure on the Irish.
“In response to those headlines, I got a call from my counterpart, the Minister for the Cabinet Office, Mr David Lidington MP, who was concerned about them and made it clear to me that they were not coming from the British government.
“I believe him. My relationship with him is good and we talk to each other in a very blunt and honest manner about all of these things.”
Frustrations
The Tánaiste admitted there were elements within Westminster that were frustrated by the backstop and wanted to see pressure being applied to Ireland. He added that equally there were comments made in Ireland about putting pressure on Westminster to get a deal done.
“That is the nature of politics when there is an impasse, but trying to put Ireland under pressure in terms of beef is not a tactic or official position being adopted by the British Government. It is a big issue, but one that we want to resolve together,” Coveney said.
He reiterated that the withdrawal agreement was not up for renegotiation. Instead, the EU and Ireland were “seeking ways to provide clarification and reassurance" to the British government.
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On Wednesday, Fianna Fáil’s Lisa Chambers raised concerns in the Dáil that the exposure of the Irish beef sector to a hard Brexit was being used by the UK to twist Ireland’s arm on the backstop.
Tánaiste Simon Coveney denied this was the case saying: “There were some unfortunate headlines in the Irish media last week around trade wars on beef and using that sector as a way of putting pressure on the Irish.
“In response to those headlines, I got a call from my counterpart, the Minister for the Cabinet Office, Mr David Lidington MP, who was concerned about them and made it clear to me that they were not coming from the British government.
“I believe him. My relationship with him is good and we talk to each other in a very blunt and honest manner about all of these things.”
Frustrations
The Tánaiste admitted there were elements within Westminster that were frustrated by the backstop and wanted to see pressure being applied to Ireland. He added that equally there were comments made in Ireland about putting pressure on Westminster to get a deal done.
“That is the nature of politics when there is an impasse, but trying to put Ireland under pressure in terms of beef is not a tactic or official position being adopted by the British Government. It is a big issue, but one that we want to resolve together,” Coveney said.
He reiterated that the withdrawal agreement was not up for renegotiation. Instead, the EU and Ireland were “seeking ways to provide clarification and reassurance" to the British government.
Read more
'Substantial amounts of money' for beef farmers in no-deal Brexit – Tánaiste
UK plans to open doors to Brazilian beef
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