Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 5 July 2016
31. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade to report on the meeting he had with the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Ms Theresa Villiers, in the wake of the result of the United Kingdom exit referendum. [19431/16]
View answerI am very conscious of the deep concerns and anxiety that have arisen for many people across the community in Northern Ireland about the referendum outcome. The fact that the majority within Northern Ireland who voted to remain now face their preference being set aside as a result of the overall result across the UK raises profound issues.
As mentioned earlier in my response to Deputy Ó Laoghaire’s question, last Wednesday, 29 June, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland and I convened a Quarterly Review Meeting of the Fresh Start and Stormont House Agreements where the referendum result was discussed. The First and deputy First Minister represented the Executive, as did the Northern Ireland Minister of Justice. In addition to the Review Meeting, I held a separate bilateral meeting with Secretary of State Villiers.
Naturally the outcome of the UK referendum on the EU was a key element of both of these meetings. In my meetings with Secretary of State Villiers, I emphasised the necessity and importance of both Governments and the Executive working together in the best interests of the people on this island.
I also reiterated the Government’s commitment to work in support of stability, reconciliation and prosperity in Northern Ireland. In this regard the Government will use its influence with our EU partners to seek to persuade them of the need for specific arrangements which protect the key gains of the peace process on this island – a process to which the EU has already made a key contribution. In addition I outlined that the Common Travel Area and cross-border EU funding, are key priorities for the Government in the period ahead.
In my discussions with Secretary of State Villiers, we agreed that the Good Friday Agreement remains the basis for the two Governments’ approach to Northern Ireland. The EU referendum result does not in any way diminish the centrality of the Good Friday Agreement or the requirement of both the British and Irish Governments to uphold it. As a co-guarantor of the Good Friday and succeeding Agreements, the Irish Government is determined that its institutions, values and principles – including the right to the British or Irish or both - will be fully protected.
Furthermore, I noted that any future arrangements will not exclusively be determined by the wishes of the Irish Government, the British Government and the Northern Ireland Executive. They will also be influenced by the wider negotiations between the UK and the EU of 27 remaining Member States. One of the challenges, therefore, will be for Ireland to use its influence with our EU partners to persuade them of the need for specific arrangements which protect the key gains of the peace process on this island.
