PRESIDENT MCALEESE’S VISIT TO SCOTLAND, MEETING WITH FIRST MINISTER, DONALD DEWAR
PRESIDENT MCALEESE’S VISIT TO SCOTLAND, MEETING WITH FIRST MINISTER, DONALD DEWAR
- I am very pleased to have this opportunity of visiting Scotland during 1999 which has been a momentous year for your country - and for you personally in your new capacity as First Minister. I understand that I am the first Head of State to visit Scotland since devolution.
- As neighbouring peoples, who share so many affinities, it seems appropriate that we should have high-level political contact at the outset of Scotland’s new era under a devolved administration.
- The ties that are developing between us are not happening for the sake of form or politeness. We have work to do together. Once the British-Irish Council is established, Scotland and Ireland will be partners in an institution devoted to nurturing a new relationship between our two neighbouring islands and, at the same time, helping to underpin the peace process. I do hope that the Council can evolve into a useful Forum for addressing common problems. I know that Irish officials have been meeting with their Scottish counterparts to ensure that the Council gets off to a good start once the institutions provided for in the Good Friday Agreement come into being.
- Even without the incentive of the British-Irish Council, a good relationship with a devolved Scotland is important. We have become more conscious of Scotland as a result of the devolution process. It is well appreciated in Ireland that what is happening in Scotland will inevitably impact on British-Irish relations.
- We wish you all the best for a successful implementation of the devolution settlement. I can imagine that this must be a very challenging time for all who are involved in Scottish politics. It is the privilege of this generation of Scottish politicians to serve in your first democratically-elected parliament. We will be watching developments here with a friendly interest.
- I see the advent of devolution, and the opportunities provided by the Good Friday Agreement, as paving the way for a new era in Scottish-Irish relations. Our Consulate was established here last year with a view to facilitating the building of links between us. As close neighbours with a long history of interaction, we have many shared interests. There is now an opportunity to exchange ideas and information on these at Government-to-Government level. I understand that you had very substantive discussions when you were in Dublin at the end of October. In addition, there have already been bilateral meetings on the environment and on strategies to combat drug trafficking, an issue which poses a real threat to the well-being of both our societies. Your visit to Dublin will, I am sure, lead to further exchanges beneficial to both sides.
- The emergence of separate Scottish and Welsh Administrations means that the British-Irish relationship can no longer be conducted exclusively between London and Dublin. Scotland and Wales will be able to make their own distinctive contribution.
The existing Government-to-Government dialogue, which has helped deliver the Good Friday Agreement, can only be enriched by your input.
-The Scots will bring special assets to the table because of the links you have with both traditions in Northern Ireland. Many Northern Unionists see strong affinities between their own community and Scotland. The productive relations that are developing between Edinburgh and Dublin ought to be reassuring to them.
- These are good times for Ireland and Scotland. Our economy has grown in an unprecedented manner throughout most of the 1990s and the Northern peace settlement seems at last to be falling into place. For your part, you have achieved devolution. Your economy seems to be accomplishing the difficult transition from a reliance on heavy industry to a specialisation in technology-based activities that offer a powerful key to future prosperity. I am sure that there is much to be gained from working together as tw