Chief Minister Allan Bell MHK has today (Friday 13 June 2014) led a senior delegation from the Isle of Man Government attending the 22nd British-Irish Council Summit in Guernsey.
Mr Bell and Infrastructure Minister Laurence Skelly MHK took part in top-level discussions on a range of issues.
The Chief Minister met the UK Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, the Irish Taoiseach Enda Kenny and the Scottish Government’s Culture and External Affairs Cabinet Secretary Fiona Hyslop.
The summit, hosted by Guernsey Chief Minister Jonathan Le Tocq at the St Pierre Park Hotel in St Peter Port, focused on the current economic situation and the importance of transport links between member administrations.
The BIC, established under the terms of the Good Friday peace agreement, is the only international forum comprising the governments of the UK, Ireland, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Isle of Man, Jersey and Guernsey.
It plays an important role in developing positive links between member countries and provides a platform for consultation and co-operation on matters of mutual interest.
As well as contributing to the summit’s main agenda, the Chief Minister and Minister Skelly took the opportunity to hold informal discussions with their political counterparts.
The Chief Minister said:
‘The British-Irish Council has always been a valuable forum for the Isle of Man, allowing us to take our place alongside the governments of our neighbouring islands and discuss common issues at the highest level. We are all facing significant financial challenges and today’s summit provided a further opportunity to look at ways of working together to grow our economies.’
He added:
‘The additional value lies in the side meetings where we can strengthen personal relationships with the leaders of other countries and highlight the Isle of Man’s position on specific issues.’
The Chief Minister and Minister Skelly attended the summit alongside the political leaders of other sovereign governments, devolved administrations and crown dependencies.
They joined delegations headed by Chief Minister Jonathan Le Tocq (Guernsey), Taoiseach Enda Kenny (Ireland), Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg MP (UK), First Minister Peter Robinson and deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness (Northern Ireland), Minister for Economy, Science and Transport, Edwina Hart (Wales), Cabinet Secretary for Culture and External Affairs, Fiona Hyslop MSP (Scotland) and Chief Minister Ian Gorst (Jersey).
As well as discussing efforts to stimulate economic growth and to address youth unemployment, Council members highlighted the value of maintaining effective transport links.
Minister Skelly said:
‘Good air and sea links are essential for both economic and social reasons, particularly for an island community such as ours. The summit focused on the importance of promoting travel and trade and strengthening friendships between people across the British islands.’
The official communiqué from the 22nd BIC Summit can be found here.
