Vol. 538 No. 3
77 Mr. Spring asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs when it is planned to establish the North-South independent consultative forum which the Government was committed to consider under the Good Friday Agreement; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17788/01]
The Good Friday Agreement provided that consideration be given to the establishment of an indepen dent North-South consultative forum appointed by the two Administrations and representative of civil society on the island. In addition, under the Programme for Prosperity and Fairness, the Government gave a commitment to work for the early establishment of this forum. The Government also recognises that there is no predetermined outcome to the process of consideration mandated by the agreement. Accordingly, this matter can only be progressed in full agreement with our partner Administration in Northern Ireland.
At the last plenary meeting of the North-South Ministerial Council in Dublin on 26 September 2000, the council agreed that a joint North-South working group, comprising officials of both administrations, be set up to study the establishment of the forum and report to the next plenary. The work of the joint working group is well advanced and it will report to the next plenary meeting of the NSMC, when convened. It will then be up to the NSMC to decide how to proceed.
