DUP warned over north-south arrangements

Attempts to hollow out the Good Friday Agreement will be resisted, the Democratic Unionist Party was warned today.

As parties remained deadlocked over future power-sharing arrangements, senior nationalist SDLP negotiator Sean Farren insisted his party would challenge DUP moves to stunt or dilute cross-border arrangements under the Agreement.

And he said his party expected the Irish Government to do the same.

The former Stormont Finance Minister said: “The North South Ministerial Council and the other means to promote and develop co-operation on an all-Ireland basis are essential building blocks of the Good Friday Agreement.

“They must neither be diluted nor should barriers be placed in the way of their development.

“DUP proposals would impede the working of the ministerial council and cap further developments until an ‘efficiency review’ had reported.”

Mr Farren said the current cross-border arrangements were only a start to the harnessing of potential which could benefit people on both sides of the border.

The North Antrim MLA continued: “Existing north-south implementation bodies are already demonstrating how that potential could be harnessed.

“The work of bodies like Intertrade Ireland, Waterways Ireland and Tourism Ireland is highly regarded and pointing the way forward.

“No-one’s political allegiance or sensitivities are endangered by such developments. On the contrary, unionists as well as nationalists appreciate the benefits that increased north-south co-opertion brings.”

Earlier this week, during talks at Stormont, the SDLP attacked British and Irish government proposals designed to give ministers in a power-sharing executive a greater say over their cabinet colleagues’ North South Ministerial Council meetings.

It was also suggested that Assembly committees could summon ministers 14 days in advance of a cross-border meeting with the Irish Government to debate the agenda.

The SDLP pressed for guarantees from the DUP that work undertaken by the NSMC before the suspension of devolution two years ago would be implemented.

Mr Farren said today that his party would vigorously defend the north-south arrangements.

“We expect the Irish Government to join with us in this stand and to press the case for further developments.”

Sinn Féin also said it opposed any move to rewrite north-south arrangements under the Agreement.