Johnny Brady (Meath, Fianna Fail)
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Question 84: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs his plans for greater all Ireland economic cooperation and the development of greater cross-border links; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4202/07]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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The Government's recently launched National Development Plan for the period 2007-2013 includes a comprehensive statement of Government policy on North/South co-operation. All-island collaboration is a key horizontal theme of the Plan. For the first time, the Plan contains proposals for significant Irish Government investment in North/South projects and initiatives for mutual benefit. The Government wishes to agree and implement these with the British Government and a restored Northern Ireland Executive.

The proposed package, which will be funded from the overall NDP envelope, includes plans for: Joint investment in new strategic projects to benefit North and South; and the opening up of access to existing development funds on an all-island basis, and/or the introduction of new, agreed joint funding measures with the British Government and the Northern Ireland Executive upon restoration.

The NDP also sets out the range of current and already planned North/South initiatives. We are investing over €1 billion in projects such as the completion of the Dublin to Belfast road corridor, the upgrade of other major roads to the North, the second North-South electricity interconnector, the new South-North gas pipeline and the development of the City of Derry Airport.

The two Governments have already agreed an ambitious agenda for strengthening North/South economic co-operation. Last October, Secretary of State Hain and I launched a ground-breaking Comprehensive Study on the All-Island Economy and agreed a range of important initiatives. These include further collaboration in research and development, including maximising access to EU funds and a new targeted approach to enterprise training and to identifying labour market needs on an all-island basis. We agreed to pool our resources in trade promotion, including the opening up of trade missions to businesses across the island and the placing of the overseas offices of Enterprise Ireland and Invest NI at the disposal of companies, North and South. The Taoiseach has recently returned from a very successful trade mission to the Gulf that included over 20 Northern Ireland businesses.

We also agreed to encourage the development of all-island business networks. I was very pleased to note that the first All-Island Business Networks Conference was held at Farmleigh House last week and was opened by Minister Micheál Martin and his Northern Ireland counterpart Minister Maria Eagle. It was attended by over 100 companies from throughout the island.

The Government is committed to taking forward North/South co-operation to promote economic prosperity and high quality public services for all the people of the island of Ireland. I want to reach early agreement with the British Government and with a restored Northern Ireland Executive on the proposals we have put forward in the NDP. I particularly look forward to working with locally elected Northern Ireland Ministers to deliver the benefits of greater North/South co-operation.