The British-Irish Council (BIC) is a body created by the Belfast Agreement in 1998, and formally established on 2 December 1999 on the entry into force of the consequent legislation. The Agreement, most often referred to as the Belfast Agreement (Comhaontú Bhéal Feirste Belfast Greeance or the Good Friday Agreement (Comhaontú Aoine an Events 1409 - The University of Leipzig opens 1755 - The second Eddystone Lighthouse is destroyed by fire Year 1999 ( MCMXCIX) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1999 Gregorian calendar) Its membership includes representatives from the governments of Ireland; the United Kingdom and three of its constituent countries: Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales; and the three Crown dependencies: Guernsey, Jersey and the Isle of Man. Ireland ( Irish: Éire, ˈeːrʲə is a country in north-western Europe. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located Constituent country is a phrase used often by official institutions in contexts in which a country makes up a part of a larger entity or grouping Northern Ireland (Tuaisceart Éireann Ulster Scots: Norlin Airlann) is a Country within the United Kingdom, lying in the northeast of Scotland ( Gaelic: Alba) is a Country in northwest Europethat occupies the northern third of the island of Great Britain. The Crown Dependencies are possessions of The Crown in Right of the United Kingdom, as opposed to overseas territories or colonies of the United The Bailiwick of Guernsey (Bailliage de Guernesey is a British Crown dependency in the English Channel off the coast of Normandy. The Bailiwick of Jersey ( Jèrriais: Jèrri) is a British Crown dependency off the coast of Normandy, France. The Isle of Man (Ellan Vannin ˈɛlʲən ˈvanɪn or Mann (Mannin) is a self-governing Crown dependency, located in the Irish Sea at the geographical Its stated aim is to "promote the harmonious and mutually beneficial development of the totality of relationships among the peoples of these islands". Due to the constitutional status of England, which does not have a devolved government, it is not represented on the Council as a separate entity. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland Devolution is the statutory granting of powers from the central government of a State to government at subnational level [1] Should that change, provisions exist that would allow England to be represented in future. [2]
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Membership and operation
Membership of the Council consists of the following governments (with current head of government, as of July 2007):
The council meets in two formats. This article focuses on the cases where the Head of Government is a separate office from the Head of State The Bailiwick of Guernsey (Bailliage de Guernesey is a British Crown dependency in the English Channel off the coast of Normandy. The new Policy Council was elected on 7 March 2007 following the election of a new Chief Minister Michael W Torode was the second Chief Minister of Guernsey. He was voted in by the States of Deliberation on 5 March 2007 and his term expired on 30 April 2008 The Chief Minister of Guernsey is the Head of government of Guernsey. The Crown Dependencies are possessions of The Crown in Right of the United Kingdom, as opposed to overseas territories or colonies of the United Ireland ( Irish: Éire, ˈeːrʲə is a country in north-western Europe. The Government of Ireland (Rialtas na hÉireann n̪ˠə ˈheːɾʲən̪ˠ is the Cabinet that exercises executive authority in Ireland. Brian Cowen (Brian Ó Comhain born) is the current Taoiseach of Ireland. The Taoiseach (ˈtiːʃəx in English t̪ˠiːʃʲəx (plural Taoisigh ( or) in Irish) also referred to as An Taoiseach ( t̪ˠiːʃʲəx is the the Sovereignty is the exclusive Right to control a Government, a country, a people or oneself The Isle of Man (Ellan Vannin ˈɛlʲən ˈvanɪn or Mann (Mannin) is a self-governing Crown dependency, located in the Irish Sea at the geographical Manxman James Anthony "Tony" Brown is the current Chief Minister of the Isle of Man and Member of the House of Keys for Castletown The Chief Minister (Ard-choylargh is the Executive Member of the Isle of Man 's parliament Tynwald. The Crown Dependencies are possessions of The Crown in Right of the United Kingdom, as opposed to overseas territories or colonies of the United The Bailiwick of Jersey ( Jèrriais: Jèrri) is a British Crown dependency off the coast of Normandy, France. The Council of Ministers of Jersey is the collective institution of Executive government in Jersey. Frank Harrison Walker is the first and current Chief Minister of Jersey, elected in 2005 by fellow States members The Chief Minister of Jersey (French Premier Ministre de Jersey) is the Head of government of Jersey. The Crown Dependencies are possessions of The Crown in Right of the United Kingdom, as opposed to overseas territories or colonies of the United Northern Ireland (Tuaisceart Éireann Ulster Scots: Norlin Airlann) is a Country within the United Kingdom, lying in the northeast of The Northern Ireland Executive is the executive arm of the Northern Ireland Assembly, the devolved Legislature for Northern Ireland Ian Richard Kyle Paisley (born 6 April 1926 styled The Rt Hon James Martin Pacelli McGuinness (Máirtín Mag Aonghusa born in Derry on 23 May 1950 is the Deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland. The First Minister and the deputy First Minister (Irish Céad-Aire agus an Leas-Chéad-Aire, Ulster Scots: Heid Männystèr an tha Heid Männystèr depute The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located Constituent country is a phrase used often by official institutions in contexts in which a country makes up a part of a larger entity or grouping Scotland ( Gaelic: Alba) is a Country in northwest Europethat occupies the northern third of the island of Great Britain. The Scottish Government (SG ( Scottish Gaelic: Riaghaltas na h-Alba) is the executive arm of the government of Scotland. Alexander Elliot Anderson "Alex" Salmond, (ˈsamənd is the First Minister of Scotland, heading a minority Scottish Government. The First Minister of Scotland (Prìomh Mhinistear na h-Alba First Meinister o Scotland is the head of the devolved Scottish The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located Constituent country is a phrase used often by official institutions in contexts in which a country makes up a part of a larger entity or grouping The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located Her Majesty's Government, or when the monarch is male His Majesty's Government, is the title used by the Government of the United Kingdom, based at WikipediaManual of Style (biographies#Academic titles --> James Gordon Brown (born 20 February 1951 is The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the political leader of the United Kingdom Sovereignty is the exclusive Right to control a Government, a country, a people or oneself The Welsh Assembly Government (WAG (Llywodraeth Cynulliad Cymru LlCC) was firstly an executive body of the National Assembly for Wales, consisting of Rt Hon Hywel Rhodri Morgan AM (born 29 September 1939) is a Welsh Politician; the Labour National Assembly for The First Minister ( Prif Weinidog) is the leader of the Welsh Assembly Government, Wales ' devolved administration which was established in 1999 The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located Constituent country is a phrase used often by official institutions in contexts in which a country makes up a part of a larger entity or grouping The eight heads of government meet in two Council summits per year. A summit meeting (or summit) is a meeting of heads of state or government, usually with considerable media exposure tight security and a prearranged Additionally, there are regular meetings that deal with specific sectors of discussion and are attended by the corresponding ministers. The work of the Council is financed by members through mutual agreement as required, and a secretariat is provided by the UK and Irish governments in co-ordination with officials of each of the other members. [4] Representatives of members will operate in accordance with whatever procedures for democratic authority and accountability are in force in their respective elected legislatures. A legislature is a type of representative Deliberative assembly with the power to create amend and change Laws The law created by a legislature is called Legislation
At the ninth meeting of the Council, it was decided that with devolved government returned to Northern Ireland that an opportune time existed "to undertake a strategic review of the Council’s work programmes, working methods and support arrangements. " This decision including the potential for a permanent standing secretariat. It was agreed that this review should return its results as soon as possible.
Work areas
The council agrees to specific work areas for which individual members take responsibility. The Belfast Agreement suggested transport links, agriculture, environmental issues, culture, health, education and approaches to the European Union as suitable topics for early discussion. The European Union ( EU) is a political and economic union of twenty-seven member states, located primarily in These work areas can be expanded or reduced as the Council decides. It is also open to the Council to make agreement on common policies. These agreements are made through consensus, although individual members may opt not to participate in implementing these. The current list of work areas and the member responsible are:
- Demography - Scotland
- eHealth - Isle of Man
- Environment - United Kingdom
- Indigenous, minority and lesser-used languages - Wales
- Knowledge economy - Jersey
- Misuse of drugs - Ireland
- Social inclusion - Scotland and Wales (jointly)
- Tourism - Guernsey
- Transport - Northern Ireland
Demography was adopted as a work area at the 2006 meeting of the Council. Demography is the statistical study of all Populations. It can be a very general science that can be applied to any kind of dynamic population that is one that changes over eHealth (also written e-health) is a relatively recent term for healthcare practice which is supported by electronic processes and communication Environmental policy is any (course of action deliberately taken (or not taken to manage human activities with a view to prevent reduce or mitigate harmful effects on nature and natural A minority language is a Language spoken by a Minority of the Population of a country The knowledge economy is a term that refers either to an economy of knowledge focused on the production and management of knowledge in the frame of economic constraints Drug abuse has a wide range of definitions related to taking a Psychoactive drug or Performance enhancing drug for a non-therapeutic or non-medical effect Social Exclusion has no agreed to defined or specific single application though one suggested definition is as follows Social exclusion is a multidimensional process Tourism is Travel for Recreational or Leisure purposes The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people who "travel Transport or transportation is the movement of people and goods from one place to another It was proposed by the Scottish Executive, who also took responsibility for it. The Scottish Government (SG ( Scottish Gaelic: Riaghaltas na h-Alba) is the executive arm of the government of Scotland. During the 2007 meeting of the Council the Scottish Government further proposed that energy become a work area of the Council and offered again to lead the area. See also Nuclear energy policy Energy policy is the manner in which a given entity (often governmental has decided to address issues of Energy development No decision will be reached on whether to add energy as a work area or who should take responsibility for it until after the strategic review returned its findings.
Name of the Council
The official name of the Council is the British-Irish Council. Some refer to it as the Council of the Isles[5] or even as the Council of the British Isles or the British Isles Council. [6][7] Particularly in Northern Ireland, use of the latter unofficial names tends to signify that a speaker is a unionist as the terms British Isles or simply Isles can be interpreted as being politically loaded. Northern Ireland (Tuaisceart Éireann Ulster Scots: Norlin Airlann) is a Country within the United Kingdom, lying in the northeast of Unionism in Ireland, is a belief in the desirability of a full constitutional and institutional relationship between Ireland and Great Britain based on the terms and The British Isles (Irish variously Na hOileáin Bhriotanacha, Oileáin Iarthair Eorpa, Éire agus an Bhreatain Mhór; Ellanyn Goaldagh Eileanan There is dispute and disagreement over the term British Isles, particularly in relation to Ireland
In represented minority and lesser-used languages the council is known as:
- Guernésiais: Conseil Britannique-Irlàndais
- Irish: Comhairle na Breataine-na hÉireann
- Jèrriais: Conseil Britannique-Irlandais
- Manx: Coonceil Ghoaldagh-Yernagh
- Scottish Gaelic: Comhairle Bhreatainn-Èirinn
- Scots: Britisch-Airisch Cooncil
- Welsh: Cyngor Prydain-Iwerddon
See also
External links
References
- ^ See Vernon Bogdanor, 'The British–Irish Council and Devolution', in Government and Opposition: An International Journal of Comparative Politics, volume 34, issue 3, July 1999, pp. Guernésiais, also known as Dgèrnésiais, Guernsey French, Guernsey Norman French, is the variety of Norman language spoken in Guernsey Irish (ga ''Gaeilge'' is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish. Jèrriais is the form of the Norman language spoken in Jersey, in the Channel Islands, off the coast of France. Manx ( Gaelg or Gailck, ɡilk or) also known as Manx Gaelic, is a Goidelic language once spoken on the Isle Scottish Gaelic ( Gàidhlig) is a member of the Goidelic branch of Celtic languages. Scots ( The Scots leid) refers to Anglic varieties derived from early northern Middle English spoken in parts of Scotland and Northern Welsh ( cy Cymraeg or cy y Gymraeg, kəmˈrɑːɨɡ and {{IPA|[ə ɡəmˈrɑːɨɡ]}}, is a member of the Brythonic branch of Celtic The North/South Ministerial Council ( NSMC)' ( Irish: An Chomhairle Aireachta Thuaidh/Theas, Ulster Scots: The Noarth-Sooth Cooncil o 291-295.
- ^ Vernon Bogdanor, The British-Irish Council, BBC Learning.
- ^ The First Minister and deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland is a diarchy. The First Minister and the deputy First Minister (Irish Céad-Aire agus an Leas-Chéad-Aire, Ulster Scots: Heid Männystèr an tha Heid Männystèr depute Diarchy (or dyarchy) from the Greek "δύο" and αρχειν "to rule" is a form of government in which two diarchs are the heads of state While other members of the organization are represented at Summit Meetings by their respective chief ministers, or on occasions have sent their deputies, Northern Ireland is represented by both the First Minister and deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland working in unity. The website of the British-Irish Council describes the heads of government of Northern Ireland as follows: "The Assembly has elected, on a cross-community basis, a First Minister and a Deputy First Minister who act jointly. " See also Paul Carmichael, 2002, "The Northern Ireland Civil Service: Characteristics and Trends Since 1970" in Public Administration, Volume 80 Issue 1 Page 23-49, Spring 2002: "Within this executive, there is a 'synchronised diarchy' (Wilford 1998,. p. 3) whereby the First Minister's position is inextricably linked to that of the Deputy First Minister. "
- ^ Belfast Agreement - Strand Three, Articles 8 and 9.
British-Irish Council website, Frequently Asked Questions: Who pays for the British-Irish Council? - ^ Simon Partridge, 2000, The British-Irish Council: the trans-islands symbolic and political possibilities, The British Council
- ^ Welcome to the website of David Trimble MLA
- ^ BBC News | BREAKFAST WITH FROST | Seamus Mallon interview
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