The General Secretary of Congress Patricia King met the leader of the British Labour Party Jeremy Corbyn at ICTU head office for an hour-long meeting in Dublin this evening.
Welcoming the Labour Party Leader's visit to Dublin Patricia King said the briefing was held to share with Mr.Corbyn the views of Congress on how Brexit will affect workers in Ireland, North, and South.
The General Secretary emphasised that there is no such thing as a "good Brexit" and warned that tens of thousands of jobs could be affected in the event of a hard Brexit. She said it was vital that peace and stability be maintained and pointed to the fragility of the situation in Northern Ireland.
Patricia King described her meeting as "very worthwhile and welcomed the opportunity to share our strong views on the consequences for workers and labour standards across the island". Congress, she noted has supported the Withdrawl Agreement negotiated between the UK and the EU. She said that both governments must honour the full terms of the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement.
The Labour Party Leader Jeremy Corbyn said his party was completely against a "no deal" Brexit. "No deal would be disastrous any way you look at it" and said he was also 'totally opposed" to any land border.
Patricia King said "It is our view that the best way to achieve this is to negotiate as close as possible a relationship between the UK and the EU; preferably with the UK as a whole remaining in the Single Market and a Customs Union in the longer term".The Irish Congress of Trade Unions represents the interests of nearly 800,000 workers on both sides of the border across the island of Ireland.
