Written answers

Tuesday, 11 May 2021

Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade

Northern Ireland

Photo of Bernard DurkanBernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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403. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the degree to which he continues to monitor development in Northern Ireland arising from Brexit or the Good Friday Agreement with particular reference to the need to ensure a cohesive and progressive approach with the objective of varying the spirit and the letter of the peace process working with the various political groupings in Northern Ireland and with the British Government in order to ensure an ongoing good working relationship between all the parties involved and to discourage unilateral action that might be a threat to the Good Friday Agreement and Stormont House Agreement and the encouragement of pre-Brexit friendly relations throughout; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24671/21]

Photo of Simon CoveneySimon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The full implementation and effective operation of the Good Friday Agreement and all subsequent agreements is an utmost priority for this Government.

The Government regularly engages with the Northern Irish Executive through the mechanisms provided for in the Good Friday Agreement, including the North South Ministerial Council (NSMC) and the British Irish Council (BIC). The Government also has regular contact at political and official level with the parties to the Northern Irish Executive and with the British Government.

The NSMC is essential to overseeing and developing North South cooperation on matters of mutual interest, including the implementation of the Good Friday Agreement. Two successful NSMC plenary meetings have taken place following the NDNA agreement, as well as a number of Sectoral meetings at Ministerial level, and progress continues across the breadth of North-South areas of cooperation.

The Government also looks forward to enhanced roles for the BIC and British Irish Intergovernmental Conference (BIIGC), as set out in the Programme for Government.

I have been in regular contact with the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Brandon Lewis with regards to the BIIGC and a date is being set for a meeting in June.

The position of the Government with respect to the legacy of the past in Northern Ireland is clear and consistent. The Stormont House Agreement is the way forward. It was agreed collectively by both Governments and the political parties after intensive negotiations, and it should be implemented.

Where the UK Government are proposing significant changes to that framework, we have made clear that these must be discussed and agreed by both Governments and the parties to the Northern Ireland Executive.

The Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland is an integral part of the Withdrawal Agreement between the EU and the UK. It addresses the complex and unique challenges presented by Brexit on the island of Ireland. The Protocol is the agreed way to safeguard the Good Friday Agreement, to avoid a hard border on the island of Ireland, and protect the Single Market.

Our shared goal must be to achieve full implementation of the Protocol. We welcome the recent constructive engagement between the EU and UK, as well as their joint outreach with NI stakeholders.

We are listening carefully to concerns relating to implementation of the Protocol, including from the unionist and loyalist communities, and we are committed to supporting engagement between the UK and EU to address them appropriately.

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