Follow that, as they say.

In this very important week, I want to raise the issue of Brexit. Tomorrow and the next day, we will see the text that will give effect to the agreement struck between the European Union and the British Government last December. The Taoiseach will recall that at the time of its publication we acknowledged some political progress had been made. However, we raised a series of contradictions inherent in that agreement at the time and I want to place them again on the record of the House.

The first contradiction was the claim there would be no hard border on the island of Ireland but yet the North would be taken out of the customs union and the Single Market. The second contradiction was the assertion there would be no threat to the Good Friday Agreement against the fact that there are 142 areas of all-Ireland co-operation that could be adversely affected by Brexit. Contradiction number three was the claim there would be no erosion in the rights of citizens living in the North as against the fact the British are determined to withdraw from the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice.

The fourth is that although the North voted to remain in the European Union, that decision has been set aside by the British Government, the DUP and others.

In the conversion of December's political agreement into a legally binding withdrawal text, it is critical that these contradictions are resolved. That is the only way to achieve clarity and certainty for our people, the all-Ireland economy and for our agreements. That means the text must explicitly state that there will be no Brexit border on the island and the only way to guarantee this is by the North remaining inside the customs union and the Single Market. The text must explicitly protect the Good Friday Agreement in all its parts and it must make clear in substance that there will be no loss of rights for citizens. The Tánaiste met with Mr. Michel Barnier in Brussels yesterday and he has seen the draft legal text. He is quoted widely today as saying that he is more than satisfied that the Irish Government and the EU are of one mind on the draft text.

Have those four contradictions been resolved? The Taoiseach said previously that this country cannot take a leap into the dark when dealing with matters connected with Brexit and I agree with him. Can the Taoiseach confirm, therefore, that the text we will see resolves all the issues I have set out and, in real terms, represents the legal protection and guarantees we need?

I am satisfied it does. The draft withdrawal agreement will be published in Brussels tomorrow at 12 noon. Obviously, I am not at liberty to give detail of it here today but it will be available for people to see at 12 noon tomorrow. The Tánaiste met with Mr. Michel Barnier yesterday to indicate our satisfaction with the text and I spoke by telephone to the Prime Minister, Mrs. May, last night.

The Deputy is aware of the background to all of this. The United Kingdom voted to leave the European Union. Almost immediately afterwards, we sought an assurance from the United Kingdom that there would be no hard border and that everything possible would be done to avoid a hard border between Northern Ireland and Ireland. We got that verbal assurance last year. We then sought to have that written down in black and white and made into a political agreement. We got that political agreement last December. Since then, we have sought to turn the black and white text of the political agreement and commitment into a legal text which forms a protocol to the withdrawal agreement. The Deputy will see that legal text tomorrow.

I am satisfied that it sets down in law how we can avoid a hard border between Northern Ireland and Ireland. As I said last December, there are three options for how to do that. The first is in the context of a new close relationship between the UK and the EU. That is our absolute preference. We do not want a border between the North and the South any more than we want a border in the Irish Sea between east and west. The second option, or option B, is the British bespoke solutions which they have yet to outline but we look forward to seeing them when they have completed them. The third option, option C, is the fall-back option, or last resort as the Prime Minister, Mrs. May, prefers to describe it. That is outlined in legal form in the withdrawal agreement being published tomorrow in Brussels. However, that withdrawal agreement is a draft text and we cannot automatically assume it will be acceptable to the United Kingdom or to all the parties in Northern Ireland. We could have an interesting few weeks ahead of us, as was the case last December. It will have to become a legal text by October this year.

Can I therefore assume that the text allows for the North remaining within the customs union and the Single Market or can I put such a direct question? I recall that last December the Taoiseach sought to assure people that the agreement struck was cast iron and watertight but in the days following the announcement it became abundantly clear that it was anything but.

Doubt was shed as to the strength of the agreement. This is quite straightforward. To protect the Good Friday Agreement, as well as the livelihoods, jobs, commerce and the economy of the island, we need the North to remain within the customs union and the Single Market. Will the Taoiseach tell us directly whether the text we will see tomorrow allows, provides for and legally underpins that?

The Deputy will see the text tomorrow. It will be published at 12 noon. I am not at liberty, for reasons I am sure the Deputy will appreciate, to go through it here today. However, I will organise briefings for the party leaders tomorrow to ensure they or their spokespeople are fully apprised of it as soon as we are at liberty to talk about its contents.

The term, which appears in the joint report and the political agreement made back in December, is that in the backstop scenario, the option C scenario, the United Kingdom will ensure that Northern Ireland maintains full regulatory alignment with the European Union thus allowing for us to avoid a hard border. The protocol to the withdrawal agreement, which will be published tomorrow, details exactly how that can be done.