The British–Irish Intergovernmental Conference (BIIGC) is an

intergovernmental organisation An international organization, also known as an intergovernmental organization or an international institution, is an organization that is established by a treaty or other type of instrument governed by international law and possesses its own leg ...

established by the Governments of

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

and the United Kingdom under the

Good Friday Agreement The Good Friday Agreement (GFA) or Belfast Agreement ( or ; or ) is a pair of agreements signed on 10 April (Good Friday) 1998 that ended most of the violence of the Troubles, an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland since the la ...

in 1998. It first met in London in 1999, and the latest meeting took place at 100 Parliament Street in London on 29 April 2024. When 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 ...

is suspended, devolved matters revert to the BIIGC's remit. The BIIGC guarantees the

Government of Ireland The Government of Ireland () is the executive (government), executive authority of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, headed by the , the head of government. The government – also known as the cabinet (government), cabinet – is composed of Mini ...

a say in areas of bilateral co-operation and on those matters not yet

devolved Devolution is the statutory delegation of powers from the central government of a sovereign state to govern at a subnational level, such as a regional or local level. It is a form of administrative decentralization. Devolved territories ...

to the

or the

North/South Ministerial Council The North/South Ministerial Council (NSMC) (, Ulster-Scots: ) is a body established under the Good Friday Agreement to co-ordinate activity and exercise certain governmental powers across the whole island of Ireland. The Council takes the for ...

. The BIIGC is normally chaired by the Irish Minister for Foreign Affairs and the

Secretary of State for Northern Ireland The secretary of state for Northern Ireland (; ), also referred to as Northern Ireland Secretary or SoSNI, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with overall responsibility for the Northern Ireland Office. The offi ...

.Taoiseach's website
/ref> Provision is made however for meetings at summit level, i.e. between the

Taoiseach The Taoiseach (, ) is the head of government or prime minister of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The office is appointed by the President of Ireland upon nomination by Dáil Éireann (the lower house of the Oireachtas, Ireland's national legisl ...

and Prime Minister, as required. Summit meetings of the BIIGC took place in 1999, 2005 and 2018. There is also provision under the Belfast Agreement for

Members of the Legislative Assembly A Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) is a representative elected to sit in a legislative assembly. The term most commonly refers to members of the legislature of a federated state or an autonomous region, but is also used for several nationa ...

to be involved in the intergovernmental conference but they do not have the power to block decisions taken by the two governments.

History

The establishment of the BIIGC was provided for under Strand Three of the Good Friday Agreement, signed on 8 March 1998. The inaugural meeting took place at

10 Downing Street 10 Downing Street in London is the official residence and office of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, prime minister of the United Kingdom. Colloquially known as Number 10, the building is located in Downing Street, off Whitehall in th ...

on 17 December 1999 and was chaired by Prime Minister

Tony Blair Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He was Leader ...

and

Bertie Ahern Bartholomew Patrick "Bertie" Ahern (born 12 September 1951) is an Irish former Fianna Fáil politician who served as Taoiseach from 1997 to 2008, and as Leader of Fianna Fáil from 1994 to 2008. A Teachta Dála (TD) from 1977 to 2011, he served ...

and attended by representatives of the

Irish government The Government of Ireland () is the executive authority of Ireland, headed by the , the head of government. The government – also known as the cabinet – is composed of ministers, each of whom must be a member of the , which consists of ...

, the

British government 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.

and the

Northern Ireland Executive The Northern Ireland Executive (Irish language, Irish: ''Feidhmeannas Thuaisceart Éireann'', Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster Scots: ''Norlin Airlan Executive'') is the devolution, devolved government of Northern Ireland, an administrative branc ...

. The BIIGC replaced the Anglo-Irish Conference which was established under Article 2 of the

Anglo-Irish Agreement The Anglo-Irish Agreement was a 1985 treaty between the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland which aimed to help bring an end to the Troubles in Northern Ireland. The treaty gave the Irish government an advisory role in Northern Irelan ...

of 1985. Under the terms of the

Belfast Agreement The Good Friday Agreement (GFA) or Belfast Agreement ( or ; or ) is a pair of agreements signed on 10 April (Good Friday) 1998 that ended most of the violence of the Troubles, an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland since the la ...

, the BIIGC is supported by officials of the British and Irish Governments, including a standing Joint Secretariat of officials dealing with non-devolved Northern Ireland matters. The BIIGC secretariat has approximately 21 staff (10 for the British side, 11 for the Irish side).Hansard, 14 July 2008: Column WA103 The staff comprise a mix of grades from senior civil servants to administrative support grades.

Devolved matters

In respect of bilateral co-operation these include: *Asylum and immigration, including

Common Travel Area The Common Travel Area (CTA; , ) is an open borders area comprising the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands. The British Overseas Territories are not included. Governed by non-binding agreements ...

issues *

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

and international issues *Social security including methods of fraud detection *Education *Policy on misuse of drugs: combating organised crime and associated money laundering *Fiscal issues

Non-devolved matters

In respect of non-devolved matters issues include: *Rights *Policing, including implementation of the Patten Report *Criminal justice *Normalisation of security arrangements and practices *Cross-border security co-operation *Victims of violence *Prison issues *Drugs and drug trafficking *Broadcasting

Criminal justice co-operation

Under an international agreement between the UK and Ireland on "Co-operation on Criminal Justice Matters" signed in 2005, the Northern Ireland minister responsible for justice reports to the BIIGC on certain matters. This is because the Agreement provides that the Ministers of the governments of the United Kingdom and Ireland (hereinafter referred to as "the Ministers") responsible for criminal justice matters in the two jurisdictions (Ireland and Northern Ireland) shall meet at least annually for the purpose of facilitating more effective co-operation and co-ordination on criminal justice matters, including in combating criminal behaviour, working together in the prevention of crime and on community safety issues, and dealing with offenders after conviction. Such meetings shall be referred to hereinafter as Ministerial Meetings on criminal justice co-operation. The Agreement provides that such meetings shall operate under the auspices of, and be accountable to, the British–Irish Intergovernmental Conference.

Meetings

The following is a list of meetings of the BIIGC: *1–17 December 1999 (Summit Level Meeting) *2–22 October 2002 *3–18 December 2002 *4–20 May 2003 *5–2 July 2003 *6–18 September 2003 *7–22 January 2004 *8–21 April 2004 *9–7 July 2004 *10–15 December 2004 *11–2 March 2005 *12–27 June 2005 (Summit Level Meeting) *13–19 October 2005 *14–1 February 2006 *15–2 May 2006 *16–25 July 2006 *17–24 October 2006 *18–26 February 2007 *25 July 2018 *2 November 2018 *8 May 2019 *24 June 2021 *2 December 2021 *23 March 2022 *7 October 2022 *19 January 2023 *28 November 2023 *29 April 2024

References

External links

Agreement between the Government of Ireland and the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland establishing a British-Irish Intergovernmental ConferenceIrish Government – British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference
{{DEFAULTSORT:British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference Government of Northern Ireland Politics of the Republic of Ireland Ireland–United Kingdom relations Northern Ireland peace process Politics of the British Isles 1998 establishments in the United Kingdom 1998 establishments in Ireland