Ireland of Equals Sinn Féin -- Building an Ireland of Equals

The All Ireland aspects of the GFA

THE ALL-IRELAND ASPECTS OF THE GOOD FRIDAY AGREEMENT.

The Good Friday Agreement allows for -

AN ALL-IRELAND MINISTERIAL COUNCIL

SIX ALL-IRELAND AREAS OF CO-OPERATION,

SIX ALL-IRELAND IMPLEMENTATION BODIES

AN ALL-IRELAND CHARTER OF RIGHTS

AN ALL-IRELAND CONSULTATIVE CIVIC FORUM

AN ALL-IRELAND INTERPARLIAMENTARY FORUM, OF MLA'S AND TD'S.

The areas of ministerial cooperation are in - education; health; transport; tourism; environment, and agriculture.

While the assembly is suspended, British direct-rule minsters replace the northern ministers, and meet with the Irish ministers to work on these issues.

[The area of cooperation on Tourism is being advanced on an All-Ireland basis by a company, Tourism Ireland, which markets Ireland abroad as one island].

There are six All-Ireland Implementation bodies. The first four have boards, on which there are reps from all the political parties, including Sinn Fein

* Intertrade Ireland [Sinn Fein rep - Robbie Smyth, Dublin]

* Foras na Gaeilge [Sinn Fein reps - Gearoid O hEara, Derry and Jake Jackson, Belfast]

[Foras is part of the Language Agency, along with Ulster-Scots]

* Food Safety Promotion Board [ SF rep - Anne Speed, Dublin]

* Foyle, Carlingford and Irish Lights Commission [SF rep - Terry Crossan, Derry].

* Special European Union Programmes Body [SEUPB],

* Waterways Ireland.

Intertrade Ireland works with the government departments and agencies north and south, to promote all-Ireland trade and business cooperation. It adds to the work being done already by the existing agencies, and helps firms with training, research etc on an all-island basis, providing some funding to businesses to help them with this work.

Foras na Gaeilge has a responsiblility for promoting the Irish language on an all-island basis. It is particularly involved in publications, and in education.

The Food Safety Promotion Board is involved in issues relating to food safety awareness, by way of research, advertising, public campaigns, conferences and providing advice to professionals and the public. It ensures north-south cooperation between the laboratories and other institutions who are working on scientific research etc.

The Foyle Carlingford Irish Lights Commission has two parts. The Loughs Agency is tasked to develop the fisheries of Foyle and Carlingford Loughs in terms of both recreational and business purposes, for fishing, aquaculture and some local tourism initiatives. The FCILC was also intended to be the General Lighthouse Authority for the island of Ireland, but to this point there are still difficulties with the transfer of powers from the existing bodies.

The SEUPB has managerial and oversight functions in the allocation and use of the EU Structural funds, such as Interreg, and the cross-border aspects of PEACE II, as well as LEADER+ and URBAN II. It is also tasked to monitor and promote the work done as part of the "Common Chapter" of the North and South's regional development plans.

Waterways Ireland's main function is the management,maintenance, development and restoration of much of Ireland's inland waterways system [canals etc] for recreational purposes, including marketing these as tourist possibilities.

These Bodies exist in law, and they are functioning all-Ireland structures of governance, however slim their remits. What republicans want is for them to be made more powerful, and for there to be more, many more, of them.

SINN FEIN'S DEMANDS FOR EXPANSION OF ALL-IRELAND ACTIVITY.

To this end, in November 2003 as part of the review of the Good Friday Agreement, Sinn Fein called for the expansion of the remit of all the current Bodies and areas of cooperation, as well as calling for more to be formed. The Agreement said there could be "at least" six of each, so there is no bar on more existing. Indeed the All Ireland Ministerial Council is allowed to meet to look at this very issue, but it only did so on one occasion. Our proposals will form part of any upcoming negotiations this year.

We asked for extra areas of ministerial cooperation in -

* COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT

* ARTS AND HERITAGE

* PUBLIC INVESTMENT

* ECONOMIC COOPERATION

and for nine further All-Ireland Implementation bodies to be formed, for -

* ENERGY

* SOCIAL ECONOMY

* POLLUTION CONTROL,

* MENTAL HEALTH

* POLICING

* JUSTICE

* RURAL DEVELOPMENT

* FURTHER AND HIGHER EDUCATION

* TELECOMMUNICATIONS

The existing areas of cooperation and Implementation Bodies - and those extra ones we are calling for - together cover almost every aspect of the daily life of everyone on this island - agriculture, health, energy,education and all the rest.