Hard Brexit risks ‘manageable’ says Irish central bank official
The risks of a “cliff edge” Brexit to the stability of the Irish financial system are manageable and the majority of its “most significant” firms are already executing contingency plans, the Central Bank of Ireland deputy governor Ed Sibley said today.
Sibley said: “I am satisfied that from a financial stability perspective the most material and immediate risks are now manageable. This is not to say that a hard Brexit will not be bumpy for the economy, and for the financial system. Indeed, some level of market disruption would be inevitable.”
Read more: Theresa May to put Brexit ‘Plan B’ before parliament on 29 January
“The Irish banking system is considerably more resilient than it was, and the most significant firms operating in Ireland across all sectors have, in line with our requirements, prepared and are executing contingency plans for a hard Brexit,” he added.
Brexit is scheduled for 29 March but following the heavy defeat of UK Prime Minister Theresa May’s Brexit plan in a parliamentary vote this week it is not clear what form it will take.
May has now offered to talk to rival party leaders to agree on an approach to Brexit that will gain the support of the Commons.
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said he would only talk to May if she ruled out hard Brexit as an option, something her spokesperson said she had refused to do.