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Ireland and the United Kingdom have already voted in the European Parliament elections. All eyes are now on how national and local politicians will address the Brexit agenda that has been dominating the debate in both countries for the past three years.
"It's a typical conversation that happens every day," says Emma Coffey, a center-right party adviser Fianna Fáil in the Irish town of Dundalk, a few miles from the northern border. "People are worried." His party wants more clarity on the implications of a "hard border" between the Republic of Ireland, which remains in Europe, and Northern Ireland, which shares with the rest of the United Kingdom .
Cross-border business contacts are affected by the uncertainty surrounding Brexit and political decisions are postponed.
Uncertainty affects the spirit of the inhabitants of Dundalk who have children in northern schools or those who benefit from health care governed by a regulation that allows citizens of different Member States to benefit from health care. from other EU countries.
"I do not think they're worrying us here at the border," says Anne Marie, a resident of Crossmaglen, a small town in Northern Ireland located four kilometers from the border.
"They just think of" mainland England "themselves. They do not seem to worry about the impact this is going to have on us, just live right on the border. "
Winners and losers in the distribution of Brexit
"There are of course factors that will benefit Ireland because of Brexit," says Federico Fabbrina, director of the Brexit Institute in Dublin, referring to the financial services sector where "Dublin is becoming an attractive capital to replace London "and higher education. , where Irish universities are likely to win as tuition fees in UK universities become less competitive
The Brexit Institute is the only think tank in the world whose only concern is to study the possible impact of the UK's departure from the EU.
"But obviously, Brexit will also be very damaging for other sectors of the Irish economy," warns Fabbrina. Agriculture and foodstuffs, which are based on an integrated supply chain with the United Kingdom, will suffer "not to mention transport and trade, because the United Kingdom ultimately serves as a gateway through which Ireland can access the European market ".
Dark view of political clbades
Far from the Brussels and Dublin think tanks, the people directly concerned by Brexit are increasingly skeptical.
"Politicians are pretty useless," says Paul, a carpenter at Crossmaglen. "They do not sit together, they do not talk together. So what is the point of going to Europe? They do not talk together here.
A fish vendor at the early morning market, who wants to remain anonymous because his "boss would not want" advertising, says he and some of his colleagues had initially supported Brexit.
"We thought we were recovering our fishing rights," he says.
But things do not seem so clear anymore. "Nothing is certain for the moment", and he has reversed his position and wants the UK to remain within the EU.
Many people in the northern counties of the Republic of Ireland and their brothers in Northern Ireland are the "turmoil", the violent incidents that marked nearly three decades of civil war.
Will Brexit bring a new set of problems?
The open border between north and south, as well as EU subsidies, have been among the main factors contributing to bringing peace to the region.
"The problem is that you will see some sort of border structure, which will probably end up causing some civil disobedience," said Gary Stokes, councilor in Newry, a town just north of the border.
"History has a habit of repeating itself. When modern troubles began in the early 1970s, they began with civil disobedience, with a young man blowing up a camera or some kind of border structure.
"And we will end up with organizations, actually at war with each other."
But he remains optimistic: "It is unthinkable to let history repeat itself," he concludes.
Emma Coffey agrees, but warns, "I think we need to do it, is we preparing for the worst and trying to get the best result possible," she said.
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