AFTER three long years of fear, worry, and debate, Fermanagh will finally be taken out of the EU this weekend.
At exactly 11pm on Friday night, January 31st, the UK will legally exit the European Union. However, while in theory Friday night is officially Brexit night, nothing will change right away. A transition period will kick in, lasting until the end of the year, during which the UK will still follow EU rules as it negotiates its future relationship with the trading bloc.
As these negotiations get underway in Brussels and London, here at home work has been taken place behind the scenes to help reduce the impact Brexit will inevitably have on the border region.
Clones councillor Pat Treanor is the current chairman of the Irish Central Border Area Network (ICBAN). The organisation takes in eight councils north and south of the border which work together to secure EU funding and to lobby the Irish and UK governments on “issues of common concern” among the border counties, such as roads and broadband provision. Obviously, Brexit has been high on ICBAN’s agenda. “While negotiations are going on around trade deals and as the EU and the UK work out how to proceed, our main focus is the welfare of the border region,” said Cllr Treanor. “We will continue the work that has been done over the years in building up relations and bringing service providers together and various officials of the councils working together.”
With a strategic plan currently in the works, ICBAN is working to encourage more investment in the border area, which will help mitigate the challenges of Brexit.
“We have been lobbying for a border development zone,” said Cllr Treanor, who said the idea has been getting support from both governments, such as from the Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement.
He added the resurrection of the Stormont Executive would also help: “There is a renewed, very positive approach to the border region, and a realisation of the difficulties the community faces.”
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