Earlier, I asked whether the Government is considering establishing a Brexit stabilisation fund and I want to ask the question again. It is important that we use all available resources of the State to ensure we protect the Irish economy and ensure businesses, exporters and farmers are protected. We have called for a €2 billion Brexit stabilisation fund and we state it should come from the Irish Strategic Investment Fund and the rainy day fund. Some trade unions and others have called for a similar fund. It is necessary to ensure additional financial supports are put in place to support sectors of the economy that are vulnerable to Brexit. Two things are needed. The Government must step up to the plate financially with a Brexit stabilisation fund and the European Union needs to complement this with additional financial supports and an easing of state aid rules. The Tánaiste did not answer these questions earlier. Will he commit to the establishment of such a fund in the State? Will he outline to the House precisely what the European Commission is looking at with regard to additional supports and state aid?

The question probably needs a more detailed answer than I will be allowed to give now. At the start of the week, the Minister, Deputy Donohoe, gave a very detailed statement on the predicted financial impact on the Irish Exchequer of a no-deal Brexit. What he clearly indicated is we will need to borrow money in that instance. We may well have to dip into a rainy day fund and we will have to work in partnership with the European Commission to protect vulnerable sectors that are exposed in the context of a no-deal Brexit and the type of tariff regime that could be imposed, as we saw this morning.

To simplify this into a Brexit stabilisation fund out of which all of those sectors will pull is probably to oversimplify it. What will happen instead is the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform will negotiate with the key Departments packages that are necessary for their sectors, particularly agriculture. The Minister, Deputy Creed, is sitting beside me and I know the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine has, for a number of weeks, been engaging with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform on how this would work.

I thank the Tánaiste.

I reassure the Deputy and many of the vulnerable sectors this is something the Government has put a lot of thought into and we will turn it into action. It will cost money and it may well result in Ireland going back into deficit rather than staying in surplus should that be necessary but it would be wrong at this stage to raise expectations in terms of the amount of money we are speaking about.

I thank the Tánaiste.

It is a significant challenge but a challenge it will be necessary to follow through on.

We will not get through everyone if we do not stick to the one minute allowed.