The East–West Council was established in 2024 as part of the Northern Ireland Executive reformation with a purpose to improve links between

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

and rest of the United Kingdom.

Purpose

According to the

Government of the United Kingdom His Majesty's Government, abbreviated to HM Government or otherwise UK Government, is the central government, central executive authority of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

its missions include: * Sharing "best practice" between Great Britain and Northern Ireland on economic inactivity and offering advisory support to implement "major projects" * Recommending interventions on east–west investment and assessing existing funding and investment strategies * Improving international investment to Northern Ireland * Bolstering east–west connectivity

History

The idea of forming an East–West Council was first proposed by

Democratic Unionist Party The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) is a Unionism in Ireland, unionist, Ulster loyalism, loyalist, British nationalist and national conservative political party in Northern Ireland. It was founded in 1971 during the Troubles by Ian Paisley, who ...

Leader

Jeffrey Donaldson Sir Jeffrey Mark Donaldson (born 7 December 1962) is a Northern Irish former politician, who served as leader of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) from 2021 to 2024 and leader of the DUP in the UK House of Commons from 2019 to 2024. He was t ...

in October 2023 as a prerequisite to restoring a power-sharing executive in Northern Ireland. Donaldson hoped that the proposed body would "bring together representatives from across the United Kingdom", on a "regular basis" to "discuss and collaborate on opportunities for enhanced co-operation". Plans for the council were outlined in a

command paper A command paper is an official document in the United Kingdom which is issued by His Majesty's Government (HMG) and presented to Parliament. White paper A white paper is a report or guide that informs readers concisely about a complex issue ...

published by the UK government in February 2024. Devolved government was

restored ''Restored'' is the fourth studio album by American contemporary Christian musician Jeremy Camp. It was released on November 16, 2004, by BEC Recordings. Track listing Standard release Enhanced edition Deluxe gold edition Standard Aus ...

in Northern Ireland on 3 February 2024 when a first minister, deputy first minister and executive were nominated by the

Northern Ireland Assembly The Northern Ireland Assembly (; ), often referred to by the metonym ''Stormont'', is the devolved unicameral legislature of Northern Ireland. It has power to legislate in a wide range of areas that are not explicitly reserved to the Parliam ...

. The East–West Council met for the first time on 26 March 2024 at

Dover House Dover House is a Grade I-listed mansion in Whitehall, and the London headquarters of the Scotland Office. The building also houses the Office of the Advocate General for Scotland and the Independent Commission for Aid Impact. History Dover H ...

in London.

Membership

The council is made up of representatives from the UK central government, Northern Ireland Executive, business and civil society. It was chaired by the

Minister for Intergovernmental Relations The minister for Intergovernmental relations is a ministerial position for the intergovernmental relations in the United Kingdom. It was created by Boris Johnson in the 2021 British cabinet reshuffle, second substantive reshuffle of his Second ...

Meetings

References

External links