TAOISEACH ENDA KENNY will head to Liverpool today to urge the Irish community there to vote to stay in EU.
With the Brexit vote a week away, Kenny is hoping to convince Irish voters in the UK that the country is better off in the union.
Over the next two days, the Taoiseach will address the Irish community at St Michael’s Community Centre in Liverpool, a British Irish Chamber of Commerce event at Grant Thornton in Manchester and an Irish community event at the Irish World Heritage Centre in Manchester.
A statement from the Taoiseach’s office says that while he recognises the issue is one for the UK, there are Irish citizens whose lives will be impacted.
While recognising that this is a matter for the UK electorate, he will acknowledge that Irish citizens living in the UK form part of that electorate and restate the reasons why the Irish Government wants the UK to remain in the EU including (a) the support that the EU provides to Northern Ireland and the peace process (b) the common travel area and free movement between the islands (c) the importance of the UK as an ally in the EU (d) the inter-dependence of our economies, particularly regarding trade.
The Taoiseach will then attend the British Irish Council Summit in Glasgow.
With the vote just a week away, polls show that the Brexit camp is gaining ground, prompting German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier to issue a stark warning of the risks to the rest of the bloc, saying it could crumble without the UK.
As the campaign enters its final stretch, a poll by ComRes showed the race on a knife-edge, with support for remaining at 46% and the pro-Brexit side at 45%.
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