Friday 28 November 2014
Chief Minister, Deputy Jonathan Le Tocq, has met with political leaders from the UK, the devolved administrations, Ireland and the Crown Dependencies today at the 23rd British-Irish Council Summit, hosted by the Isle of Man.
The Irish Taoiseach, the UK Secretary of State for Northern Ireland and Scotland's new First Minister were among those attending the Summit. The Summit was also attended by the deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland, by the First Minister of Wales, and by the Chief Ministers of the Crown Dependencies of Guernsey, Jersey and the Isle of Man.
The Summit meeting took place today, chaired by the Chief Minister of the Isle of Man, Allan Bell MHK. The primary themes of the Summit were digital inclusion and economic growth. The Council discussed the increasing importance of digital participation in everyday life and its potential contribution towards wider governmental policies. Attendees also provided an economic update to the Council and discussed the various initiatives in place to stimulate the economy further.
Chief Minister, Deputy Jonathan Le Tocq said:
"It is an honour to represent Guernsey at the 23rd British-Irish Council Summit in the Isle of Man. The discussion and sharing of best practice in relation to digital inclusion is particularly welcome at a time when the States of Guernsey has identified the need to improve and widen the ways it delivers services and information to islanders by becoming more effective and efficient in the digital arena.
"The delivery of services through e-government initiatives is a way of achieving that, and sharing best practice and expertise with other members of the British-Irish Council is invaluable. It will be particularly useful to meet with the UK Cabinet Office Minister, Francis Maude MP, responsible for UK Government transformation, in this regard.
"Increasing digital capability and expertise on-island will also give businesses across all sectors of the economy the ability to diversify their activities, so it is particularly apt to be discussing economic performance and growth at the same time as digital inclusion.
"This summit also provided the first opportunity for the Crown Dependencies to meet following Jersey's general elections."
-ENDS-
Further information
On 10 April 1998 the British and Irish governments and the political parties in Northern Ireland approved a comprehensive political agreement known as the Good Friday Agreement. One of the institutions created under the Agreement was the British-Irish Council (BIC).
The formal purpose of the Council as outlined in strand 3 of the agreement is "to promote the harmonious and mutually beneficial development of the totality of relationships among the peoples of these islands... the BIC will exchange information, discuss, consult and use best endeavours to reach agreement on co-operation on matters of mutual interest within the competence of the relevant administrations".
The Council normally operates by consensus, and it aims to provide a forum where members can have an opportunity to consult, co-operate and exchange views with a view to agreeing common policies or common actions in areas of mutual interest for the benefit of all.
The Council includes members from sovereign governments, devolved institutions and crown dependencies. Membership of the Council comprises representatives of the Irish and British governments and of the devolved institutions in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales, together with representatives of the Isle of Man, Guernsey and Jersey.
The Council is unique in that it is the only international forum in which these 8 members participate. All members act in accordance with their own democratic procedures and remain accountable to their respective elected institutions.
Work is currently underway in the areas of:
- misuse of substances
- environment
- transport
- social inclusion
- indigenous, minority and lesser-used languages
- demography
- early years policy
- digital inclusion
- collaborative spatial planning
- creative industries
- energy
- housing
The Council meets in different formats, including summit (Heads of Government/ Administrations) and sectoral (Ministerial and official) level. Officials from BIC member administrations meet in advance to prepare for the meetings. Further details about meetings are available in the communiqués which the Council issues after summits and ministerial meetings. The Council also hosts conferences, seminars and study visits for experts in particular fields, including for example the digital divide and social inclusion.
The Secretariat for the British-Irish Council is provided by officials from the member administrations; staffed full-time, from a permanent base in Edinburgh, Scotland. The Secretariat works in co-ordination with senior officials of each of the other BIC member administrations.
The website for the British-Irish Council is available here: http://www.britishirishcouncil.org/
