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THE TÁNAISTE WILL seek approval from Cabinet today for a new Brexit Omnibus Bill to be drafted and will advise ministers on the possible outcomes if there is no extension to the transition period past 31 December.
Yesterday the UK’s chief negotiator said any request for an extension to the Brexit transition period from the EU will be rejected.
David Frost said that the government’s position on the issue is “pretty clear”, and that negotiators are working towards an end of year deadline.
Tánaiste Simon Coveney will bring a memo to Cabinet today outlining preparations for the rest of the year in relation to Brexit, including the position of talks on the future trade deal between the EU and UK.
There have been three rounds of talks already, led by the EU’s chief negotiator Michel Barnier. A fourth round of talks is scheduled to take place, with a high level summit to follow before the second part of the year.
Coveney’s memo will state that the government does not believe the UK will seek an extension to the transition period past 31 December and there are therefore two possible scenarios at the end of this year:
If there is no trade deal, the UK and EU will be trading on World Trade Organization terms from 1 January 2021.
All government departments are now preparing for both scenarios, though the preference for Ireland and the rest of the EU is a trade deal that keeps the UK as close as possible.
The memo will also seek approval for a new Brexit Omnibus Bill to be drafted to cover the needs of eight government departments. Last year’s omnibus bill covered a no withdrawal agreement scenario and since a no-deal situation was averted new draft legislation is required.
Coveney’s memo will also seek approval for a new communication campaign with key stakeholders including business and citizens to be ready for whatever scenario.
The memo will note the UK’s commitments last week to the Withdrawal Agreement and the Irish protocol which guarantees no return to a hard border on the island regardless of the outcome of the trade talks.
- With reporting by Christina Finn.
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Happy St. Patrick’s day one and all!
Lovely to see children try to keep up peoples spirits at such a hard and difficult time for all. Happy Saint Patrick’s day to all, we Irish have come through worse crisis than this and we will prevail again.
Keep up the spirit kids, we all need it.
We did the same here, great idea. This situation has really shown me how resiliant kids are. We have cancelled Disneyland Paris, 9 year olds birthday party etc and when I asked the kids how did they feel about this, they said they understood and that the most inportant thing is to help stop people getting sick.
@Elaine Tok Tok: wow you raised them well should be very proud
@Elaine Tok Tok: Very mature and understanding kids, many adults could learn from them!
@Elaine Tok Tok: we also had to postpone our son’s birthday party. He’ll be 8 this Thursday, and is completely fine about it. We told him we’ll have a party when it’s safe to do so. Kids are so resilient.
What a great initiative!
Happy St. Patrick’s day everyone
We decorated ours too. The kids are so excited. Its heart warming. They had been looking forward to st Patrick’s day for weeks
@Motherofthree: Same here, kids disappointed but understanding.
Very sweet and back to basics. Irish spirit is truly alive
Nice to see. The current situation doesn’t mean we can’t have fun or enjoyment in our lives. Happy St. Patrick’s Day.
A nice day for a long family walk in the parks or forests…just keep a safe distance from others. Lá Fhéile Pádraig sona duit.
Nice work Ella’s mom
@Ron Kingston: thanks Ron, Ella’s nana sent in her sent in her peoject and I can assure you that every bead button and butterfly was selected and applied be Ella.
@Lorraine Cullen: She’s a talented 7 year old, with way over the average age hand-eye coordination.
Fantastic way to inject a bit of normality into their new routines now!
@Nuala Mc Namara: Wishing everyone well this St Patrick’s Day & keep the solidarity going through this & let’s all play our part to’flatten the curve’!
In Athlone we had a car parade. Everyone decorated their cars and we drove through the town waving and playing music. There must have been over 100 cars take part. Kids had a great time.
We spent the day making signs for the windows too aww I love Ireland, we’re still smiling
Well done lads! Happy St Patrick’s Day
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