State Papers 1987: Leaders re-established good terms after Anglo-Irish clash

The first meeting between Charles Haughey and British prime minister, Margaret Thatcher, after Haughey was appointed Taoiseach for a second time, in 1987, was described as “friendly”.

Records show that civil servants viewed the meeting of the two political leaders, on the fringes of an EU summit in Brussels, in June, 1987, as an opportunity to re-establish good relations.

The pair had famously clashed at an Anglo-Irish summit in 1980, during Mr Haughey’s first term as Taoiseach.