David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein)
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99. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the areas of North-South co-operation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52685/17]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The main forum for advancing North South co-operation is the North South Ministerial Council (NSMC), which was established under Strand Two of the Good Friday Agreement. In the Council, the Government works with the Northern Ireland Executive to advance areas of practical co-operation which are to our mutual benefit, and the Council oversees co-operation in the agreed twelve Areas or Sectors.

In six of these Sectors, co-operation is taken forward by means of the North South Implementation Bodies: Waterways Ireland, Food Safety Promotion Board, InterTradeIreland, Special EU Programmes Body, North/South Language Body, and the Loughs Agency, all of which operate on an all-island basis.

In the other six “Areas of Co-operation” - agriculture; education; environment; health; tourism (including Tourism Ireland Ltd.) and transport - common policies and approaches are agreed in the North South Ministerial Council but implemented separately in each jurisdiction. Outside of the NSMC structure, good co-operation also takes place in other areas including energy.

With the continuing absence of a functioning Executive, the North South Ministerial Council cannot operate and bring together the Government and the Executive to oversee ongoing North/South work and further develop co-operation, as provided for under the Good Friday Agreement. This is a most serious absence, and particularly so at a time when the Council should be continuing the work it commenced last year to deal with the challenges of the UK exit from the EU. Common Principles were agreed at the Plenary meeting of the NSMC in November 2016, to coordinate engagement by the Government and the Executive to deal with the challenges that are raised on an all-island basis by the UK exit from the European Union. We should be working together on this through the North South Ministerial Council.

In the context of the UK exit, a North South mapping exercise was undertaken during October and November 2017 between the EU Article 50 Taskforce, with the support of Irish officials, and the UK to map out areas of co-operation that operate on a North South basis on the island of Ireland. It highlighted just how broad-ranging and varied that co-operation is. The exercise demonstrated the extensive range of co-operation that happens, under the formal auspices of the North South Ministerial Council, including through the work of the six Implementation Bodies; between Government Departments in non-NSMC areas; and between agencies, regulators and other Government bodies. The co-operation is interconnected, mutually supporting and complementary.

North South co-operation brings very tangible benefits to the daily lives of people and, in particular, to those living in the border regions where it contributes to improving economic opportunity and development. It is also a very practical outworking of the peace process which allows for the normalisation of relationships between people across the island, to our mutual benefit.