Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin has said his party would plan for a hard Brexit if in government, and accused Fine Gael of "hiding vital information" on the consequences of such a scenario.
Speaking on RTÉ's The Week In Politics, Mr Martin said: "I would prepare for a hard Brexit. And I wouldn't be shy in sharing the realities of that with people, in terms of what that may mean."
Earlier this year, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said: "What we're not going to do is design a border for the Brexiteers because they're the ones who want a border. It's up to them to say what it is, to say how it would work."
However, Mr Martin said today: "I would prepare - publicly and transparently - for the different scenarios."
He also criticised the government for not publishing a report compiled by the Revenue Commissioners on the impact of Brexit on Irish business - a process the government discontinued.
Mr Martin said: "I was very taken aback by the failure of government to share that with other political leaders who have acted in good faith... on Brexit."
He added: "It's not good enough for the government to be hiding vital information... our business people need to know about these realities... and the enormous impact on their trading relationship" with Britain.
The Fianna Fáil leader also said the Irish government should be in direct talks with the British government on the consequences which flow from Brexit.
He said: "I'm a bit taken aback by the degree to which the government has put all the eggs in the Barnier basket ... Obviously there is a formal issue about negotiating with the British, but we do need to be influencing British public opinion."
