Shane Moynihan (Dublin Mid West, Fianna Fail)
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187. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if consideration is being given to expanding areas of co-operation under the North South Ministerial Council and the British-Irish Council; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27325/25]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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There is always scope for exploring the expansion of Areas of Cooperation and the work of the North South Bodies, in line with the Good Friday Agreement. Any such expansion would require the agreement of the Northern Ireland Assembly.

There is however a wide and evolving range of cross-cutting issues which can, and are, being discussed within the existing areas of cooperation of the North South Ministerial Council or NSMC.

At the first plenary meeting of the NSMC following restoration of the institutions last year, for example, Ministers noted the significant challenges faced in both Administrations in addressing climate change and loss of biodiversity and agreed that all NSMC Sectoral meetings consider these issues. These issues continue to be discussed in the relevant sectoral NSMC meetings.

Since restoration of the institutions, the work programmes in a number of different Areas of Co-Operation have also been updated with the agreement of the both Administrations. In the area of education, Ministers agreed to extend the work programme to include areas such as Digital and Artificial Intelligence. The updated work programmes are available to view on the North South Ministerial Council website.

As regards the British-Irish Council (BIC), it was established under the Good Friday Agreement with a formal purpose ‘to promote the harmonious and mutually beneficial development of the totality of relationships among the peoples of these islands’. Its means of doing so is to exchange information and reach agreement on cooperation matters of mutual interest within the competence of the eight member administrations.

The BIC work is conducted through biannual BIC Summits, where recent discussions have looked at subjects from child poverty, to renewable energy, and Just Transition. The upcoming BIC Summit in June will look at AI and Public Sector Reform.

More detailed work is also done through BIC Work Sectors. There are currently ten of these, with each chaired by one, or more, member administrations - Transport; Social Inclusion; Planning and Places; Indigenous, Minority and Lesser-Used Languages; Housing; Environment; Energy; Early Years; Drugs and Alcohol; and, Creative Industries.

The areas of activity and cooperation under the BIC are decided by consensus, and are kept under regular review. This ensures its work remains relevant and responsive to the emerging needs and priorities of the eight member administrations. Ireland actively engages in and supports the BIC's work to advance relationships and cooperation across these islands.