The challenges presented Ireland by Brexit are very significant and will help shape politics in Ireland in 2017 and well beyond. John O’Brennan is Director of the Maynooth Centre for European and Eurasian Studies and he has been very active in contributing to Brexit research and public discussion since the 23 June 2016 referendum. He is one of the leaders of a new research network focusing on the impact of Brexit called The Islands and Union Network (TIUN). To date the network has held a number of conferences and workshops at the Royal Irish Academy. On 18 January 2017 John will be presenting a paper at the British Academy on Ireland and Brexit.
John was one of the expert witnesses to the House of Lords Inquiry into the impact of Brexit on Ireland. The report can be found here: http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld201617/ldselect/ldeucom/76/76.pdf
Over the course of the autumn semester, John appeared on a range of radio shows to discuss Brexit and the rise of populist politics across Europe. These included: Newstalk Breakfast, The Last Word with Matt Cooper (Today FM), Kildare Today (Kildare FM), Oireachtas TV, Saturday Live with Claire Byrne (RTE Radio One) and The Marian Finucane Show (RTE Radio One).