Ireland ‘severely’ affected by Brexit, warns Enda Kenny
He said 400,000 households in the UK and Ireland are supported by the trade between both countries.
“How would those household incomes fare under new trade arrangements if the UK left the EU? There are a myriad of different trading models that could be put in place,” he told a Bloomberg Brexit forum.
Mr Kenny said he would be travelling to the UK and the North in the coming weeks to highlight the advantages of remaining in the EU.
Just spoke to @BloombergTV on the importance of the U.K. remaining in the EU from Ireland's point of view. pic.twitter.com/gxEKmvRagn
— Enda Kenny (@EndaKennyTD) May 13, 2016
“Each of the alternatives would impede — not improve — trade flows,” he said.
In an appeal to the Irish living in Britain, he added: “First and foremost, we want the UK to remain a part of a strong EU and work with us to make it better.
“Second, Ireland will remain a committed member of the EU, regardless of the outcome of the UK referendum. Third, we will preserve the strength of the British-Irish relationship that has been carefully fostered over the years.”
Meanwhile, British ex-pats in Ireland have until Monday to register online for a postal vote in the Brexit referendum.
It is estimated around 50,000 British people live in Ireland and are entitled to vote in the referendum. The British expatriate community here is the second- largest in Europe after Spain
To ensure their postal vote is received and returned on time, British voters had been advised to register online before this Monday. Postal votes will be sent out between May 23 and May 27.
A survey of eligible voters by the UK electoral commission showed 30% unsure of the rights of overseas voters, while 20% thought they were not entitled to vote.
Fine Gael MEP Brian Hayes said: “The research shows that 50,000 British expats living in Ireland are not aware that it’s possible to vote in the upcoming European referendum. If you are a British citizen living in Ireland, who has been registered to vote in the UK in the last 15 years, you are entitled to vote. The whole process takes five minutes.”
