Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union :

To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what recent discussions her Department has had with Government of the Irish Republic on potential changes to the management by the UK and Irish Governments of the Foyle and Carlingford Lough from 30 March 2019.

The Government has no plans to change the management of the Foyle and Carlingford Loughs from 30 March 2019.

As set out in our Northern Ireland and Ireland position paper, it is important that EU exit negotiations achieve the UK’s, Ireland’s and EU’s shared objective of upholding the Belfast (‘Good Friday’) Agreement in all its parts, and also that, crucially, the UK and the EU do not do anything to obstruct the wide range of cooperation between Northern Ireland, Ireland and Great Britain in the future partnership.

We have made good progress in discussions with the EU within the Northern Ireland and Ireland Dialogue. We have agreed that the Belfast Agreement should be protected in full, including its constitutional arrangements. We have also mapped out areas of cooperation that function on a North-South basis.