Debate contribution: North/South Ministerial Council: Institutional and Plenary Meetings

Debate contribution by Ms Michelle O'Neill on 16 June 2026.

MLA

Ms Michelle O'Neill

Party at the time

Sinn Féin

Date

16 June 2026

Type

Debate contribution (made as a minister)

Business

Ministerial Statements

Heading

North/South Ministerial Council: Institutional and Plenary Meetings

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 5623594

Read the official Assembly record

Text

Go raibh maith agat, a Cheann Comhairle.

In compliance with section 52C of the Northern Ireland Act 1998, I wish to make the following statement on the fifteenth institutional meeting of the North/South Ministerial Council (NSMC) and the thirty-first plenary meeting of the North/South Ministerial Council, both of which were held at the NSMC joint secretariat office in Armagh on 8 May 2026. The deputy First Minister and I have agreed that I will provide the report and that we are making the statement on behalf of all Executive Ministers who attended. I will begin with the institutional meeting. The deputy First Minister and I represented the Executive, and the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Helen McEntee TD, represented the Irish Government. Minister McEntee chaired the institutional meeting. The NSMC discussed matters relating to the North/South implementation bodies and noted that the freedom of information code of practice is in the final stages of review and will be brought to a future NSMC meeting for approval. Ministers noted that a process is now under way to collectively review the grading of the CEO posts of the NSMC bodies. The Council had a discussion on the developments in the wider policy environment. It noted the far-reaching global geopolitical developments that had taken place since the last meeting and discussed the current situation. The Council noted the economic impact in both jurisdictions of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East in particular. Ministers noted the pivotal role that Ireland will play in the EU from 1 July as president of the Council of the European Union. Ministers also noted the progress being made in key areas under the strategic partnership between the UK and the EU and the fact that cooperation between both jurisdictions will continue in the context of the evolving nature of those relations. The meeting closed with the NSMC agreeing to meet again in institutional format in late 2026.

Following the institutional meeting, the thirty-first plenary meeting of the NSMC took place. The deputy First Minister and I led the Executive delegation, and the Taoiseach, Micheál Martin, led the Irish Government delegation. The deputy First Minister and I chaired the meeting. In the opening remarks, the Council discussed the current global situation, including the ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East and their impact on the island. The Council welcomed the ongoing work being undertaken to address the legacy of mother-and-baby institutions, including progress on benefit disregards that will ensure that related payments do not affect an individual’s entitlement to benefits, regardless of where on these islands they currently live. The NSMC also noted the continued commitment to improving access to records and the fact that officials will continue to engage on that important work. The next item on the agenda related to business and trade matters. The Council had an exchange of views on international and domestic business and trade developments, including developments on US tariffs, recent steel safeguard announcements and current trade impacts arising from the conflict in the Middle East. Ministers agreed that, in what remains an evolving international trading environment, the two Administrations will remain engaged with each other on business and trade matters. The Council also recalled that, where appropriate, the NSMC sectors should continue to consider how agreed collaborative approaches can contribute to the promotion of economic growth. Ministers noted that the most recent combined figures for trade in goods and services between the two jurisdictions showed a total value of £14·5 billion or €17·2 billion in 2024. We moved on to have a constructive discussion on ending violence against women and girls, acknowledging the unacceptably high levels of gender-based violence and violence against women and girls in both jurisdictions. The Council agreed that there is a need for a whole-of-society response to address that. Ministers also agreed that sport provides an appropriate avenue to explore joint working on prevention-focused interventions. Ministers also agreed to explore the potential for further collaboration on initiatives with a protection focus, including child protection in the context of gender-based violence. The Council recognised that human trafficking for sexual exploitation is a really significant issue in both jurisdictions that also has a cross-border dimension. It agreed that officials will continue to examine opportunities for co-operation in that area. Ministers welcomed a shared learning event that took place in Drogheda in March of this year that showcased the experience of rolling out Operation Encompass in the North. The next topic of discussion was on infrastructure and investment cooperation. We noted the decision of the Department for Infrastructure to appeal the judgement against the A5 western transport corridor and the fact that the appeal is due to be held on 25 and 26 June. The Council noted the ongoing work by Waterways Ireland on the Ulster canal restoration project and welcomed the continued progress that has been made on the Narrow Water bridge main construction project. Ministers welcomed the continued collaboration to progress the recommendations of the all-island strategic rail review through the rail project prioritisation strategy developed by both Administrations and published in December. They also welcomed the signing on 7 May of the contract of almost €700 million for the Enterprise rail fleet, funded by the Government of Ireland, the Executive and the PEACE PLUS programme. The Council noted the progress that has been made on the Ulster University Magee expansion project and that the outcome of the planning decision on the construction of a new teaching block is awaited. We welcomed the commencement of projects under the second call of the North/South research programme and the progress on delivery of collaborative research and innovation programmes under the Shared Island bioeconomy initiative; partnerships between the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) and DAERA; and the co-centre programme. The Council welcomed the announcement by the Irish Government in November 2025 of a Shared Island greenway development fund of €2 million to support the further development of greenways in the border region. The Council also welcomed the November 2025 announcement by the Irish Government that the Minister for Transport will introduce a new public service obligation (PSO) air service between Dublin Airport and City of Derry Airport in 2026. Ministers welcomed the progress on the implementation of the PEACE PLUS programme and noted that discussions on allocations to successor programmes are taking place and that the Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB) has commenced the development of a successor programme. We then discussed emergency planning and preparedness. The NSMC welcomed the regular and ongoing collaboration between officials in both jurisdictions on civil contingencies, resilience and emergency preparedness.

The Council also welcomed the sustained engagement between the jurisdictions to enhance strategic cooperation in the area of resilience and preparedness. Ministers welcomed the fourth all-island disaster risk reduction conference, which was held on 29 and 30 April in Dundalk, and supported further discussions between the two Administrations on optimising cooperation on emergency preparedness, management, recovery and resilience. The NSMC welcomed the announcement in November 2025 of a €5·9 million allocation from the Shared Island Fund to strengthen cooperation between the Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service and Ireland's National Directorate for Fire and Emergency Management. That coordinated investment will expand training facilities, invest in interoperable urban search and rescue training equipment and procure a flood containment module. The Council noted that the two services and their parent Departments are working to finalise the approach. We also welcomed the announcement in November 2025 of more than €4 million in PEACE PLUS funding for two projects on cross-border collaboration on emergency management — Training Across Communities for Tactical Interoperability for Cross-Border Safety (TACTICS) and Resilient Neighbours — delivered by fire and emergency services and local authorities for both jurisdictions. The NSMC noted that, despite the global disruption to the supply of oil and gas and consequent price increases, there are currently no issues around security of supply across either jurisdiction, and officials will continue to monitor the situation jointly and update Ministers as necessary. The Council noted that, since the last NSMC meeting in October, Ministers have met in nine sectoral formats, and the joint secretariat continues to work with both Administrations to facilitate NSMC meetings across all sectors. The Council noted that corporate governance matters have been considered in each of the North/South implementation body sectors, including business plans, budgets and annual reports and accounts. It was noted that the Council appointed a number of board members to the North/South bodies and that the joint secretariat hosted a board member conference in February 2026. The NSMC was advised that Ministers at relevant sectoral meetings have discussed collaboration to address climate change and loss of biodiversity and how agreed collaborative approaches can contribute to the promotion of economic growth and disability issues. Finally, Ministers agreed a future schedule of NSMC meetings to take place across the various sectors in plenary and institutional format.

1,482 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

Not flagged

Jev’s structured answers

Assessed 21 October 2026 at 15:47 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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