Dublin and Stormont consider increasing cross-border bodies

The Government and the Stormont Executive are to consider increasing the number of cross-border bodies, it was disclosed today.

First Minister David Trimble confirmed that senior officials from Belfast and Dublin have been ordered to look at other areas of co-operation which could brought within the North South Ministerial Council.

At present there are six implementation bodies set up under the terms of the Agreement.

Mr Trimble conceded that before the Agreement was signed unionists had been concerned about cross-border structures.

‘‘Since the Agreement the operation of the NSMC structures has not given rise to any controversy at all,’’ he said after the first meeting of the Institutional Format of the NSMC.

‘‘It shows that in the Agreement we got the architecture right and people can see the procedures what is going on. There is transparency and accountability.’’

The First Minister said a range of cross-border measures which existed outside the structures of the NSMC could be brought on board.

‘‘It is therefore quite natural to think in terms of the possibility of formalising within the NSMC other areas of co-operation,’’ he added.

Today’s meeting at Parliament Building was co-chaired by Deputy First Minister Mark Durkan, while the Irish Government was represented by Brian Cowen, the Minister for Foreign Affairs.

Mr Durkan said the meeting was useful in identifying how the NSMC’s work could be improved, adding: ‘‘We have dealt with a number of areas where we want to see some sensible development.’’

In a joint communique issued afterwards, the two men said that problems had arisen over the Foyle, Carlingford and Irish Lights Commission over the transfer of functions from the government in London.

They approved a budget of £54.07m for the North South bodies for 2002, and set up a working group to consider the roles of the Northern Ireland administration and the NSMC in relation to the European Union.