Keynote address by Taoiseach Leo Varadkar at 3rd Shared Island Forum

Keynote address by Taoiseach Leo Varadkar at the 3rd Shared Island Forum, Dublin Castle, 8 February 2024.

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Good morning, everyone.

We meet today in Dublin Castle, a place where history has been made many times, a place that reflects the intertwined histories of Ireland and Britain.

Where in May 1998 a resounding result was announced in favour of the Good Friday Agreement. From the darkness of conflict, emerged the hope, the promise of a new future.

We gather today to make good on that promise, to help make that new future a reality.

I also think this morning of someone who was often in this place, my forbearer John Bruton who worked tirelessly for peace and who in particular negotiated the Framework Agreement which contained many elements of what became the Good Friday Agreement.

A generation has come of age knowing peace.

But it has also grown up in a world where repairing the damage of the Troubles and building reconciliation, has been stop-start, difficult and incomplete.

The events of this week have given us all renewed hope. The return of the Executive and Assembly in Northern Ireland is hugely significant and hugely welcome.

The lost opportunities of the past two years have been a sharp reminder of how indispensable the Good Friday Agreement is.

I pledge that the Irish Government, as co-guarantors, will do everything that it can to support the new power-sharing Executive and Assembly to help them make a success of it. We look forward to working with the new First Minister and Deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland, and to having an early meeting of a Plenary North-South Ministerial Council in Armagh.

It has sometimes been difficult to acknowledge that we have a shared history. And that we have a shared future too.

We still have some way to go before we achieve mutual trust and reconciliation between the different traditions on this island.

I believe words will only take us so far. We need actions to go with them. A shared island needs a shared infrastructure, a shared all-island economy, a shared set of dreams about what we can achieve when we work together.

Shared Island Initiative

At the core of the Shared Island Initiative is our commitment to work with all communities and political traditions.

To build a consensus on what kind of future people want on this island, no matter how it is constituted.

And, to work, with sustained commitment and resourcing, to create that shared future together.

An leibhéal uaillmhéine a ardú maidir lena bhfuil indéanta trí Chomhaontú Aoine an Chéasta.

Le borradh a chur faoin oileán seo do gach aon duine.

[Raising the level of ambition for what is achievable through the Good Friday Agreement.

To make this island a better place for all.]

I think for too many decades, there was little joined-up planning and investment, North and South.

Communities in the border counties suffered the most from this fragmented approach.

A legacy of the Troubles is that there were missed opportunities across the island.

We missed out in strategic transport infrastructure, in regional development, in arts and education, and in shared healthcare services.

Today we have the opportunity to invest strategically for the whole island. We can afford it. And we should do it while we can.

We face major challenges - including climate change, energy security and future skills needs – and to face them we need to think about things on a North/South or East/West basis where it makes better sense to do so.

We are taking a whole-of-government approach to take this work forward, involving all Ministers and their departments and agencies.

In 17 dialogues so far, we have heard from more than 3,500 citizens.

We have heard from voices under-represented in the peace process, including those of women, ethnic and other minorities, and young people.

And we have listened to how we can better share our island for the benefit of all, for example in the areas of Education, Healthcare, and Sport.

We have been able to ask what we can do better as an island-wide society to end Gender-Based Violence; accommodate national identities; and promote our arts and culture.

A new Shared Island Youth Forum started in September, with members meeting regularly to develop their vision and values for a shared future.

I had the privilege to meet with the Forum in December and it is good to see some members here today.

These civic representatives, all born since 1998, are working to give voice to their generation and inspire how this island’s future is shaped.

I believe these dialogues and the wide-ranging Shared Island research programme are informing what we will invest in and what new policies we will develop.

In 2020, we committed €1 billion to the Shared Island Fund for this decade, providing ring-fenced resourcing to move forward with investment priorities that are all-island.

So far, we have allocated almost €250 million from the Fund to more than 15 major projects and multi-annual programmes.

We are already honouring commitments like the Ulster Canal restoration, to provide a major blueway and greenway amenity.

And, we are investing in the construction of a new academic building at Ulster University in Derry, to help expand higher education opportunities for people in the North-West.

In every case, wherever possible, we are working with our Northern Ireland Executive and British Government counterparts to co-ordinate these investments and our announcements.

I believe all-island and East-West economic opportunities are not an either/or.

I want to maximise both so we can invest more in communities and let business, trade and innovation flow and grow.

A good example is the joint funding of €70 million agreed by Minister Simon Harris with his Northern Ireland and British Ministerial counterparts in 2022 for two major research Co-Centres to conduct world-leading work on climate and food sustainability.

Last year we provided a new €3 million fund for civic society groups - which the Tánaiste is leading - to form new North/South or East/West partnerships;

Also we have added Shared Island dimensions to our Community Climate Action and Creative Ireland programmes.

There are deep and vibrant connections North and South because of family and business ties, and we know that island-wide sporting, cultural, trade union and other civic organisations are part of the pulse of society.

But we also recognise that cross-border interactions in other ways are less than they should be.

There is not enough on-island tourism or student mobility.

Above all, I want to see new connections flourish on this island in all ways and in all walks of life.

2024 Shared Island priorities

Our Shared Island mission is to build bridges visible and invisible. The Initiative is more than a policy; it is a pledge to every person on this island that their voice matters and that their future is ours to shape together.

In this shared future, our commitment to an all-island economy becomes not just a choice, but a necessity.

So this year, we will commit unprecedented resourcing to enable major cross-border investments, to create a more connected, sustainable, and prosperous island for all.

Today I want today to highlight four opportunities:

First, the A5 upgrade will provide long-awaited, vital and safer connectivity for the North-West.

We also want an hourly rail connection between Dublin and Belfast, an agreed objective for both Administrations, to better link our cities and communities. This will bring significant opportunities for education, for tourism and for business.

We will contribute to the redevelopment of Casement Park in Belfast, that will be part of the EURO 2028 tournament.

This enduring major sports infrastructure can be achieved with funding from both the Irish and British Governments, as well as the Executive and the GAA.

We will also invest in the Narrow Water Bridge to link the Mourne Mountains in Co. Down with the Cooley Peninsula in Co. Louth. This will be good for tourism and bring significant economic benefits, but it will also create new opportunities and deepen connections between communities on both sides of the border.

It will be a powerful symbol of what can be achieved.

And we are already thinking about how we can move forward on other shared objectives, for instance, on Enterprise; Education; Tourism; and the Green Energy transition.

A range of opportunities have been developed through the Shared Island Local Authority scheme that we want to see progress in 2024.

There is real potential in shared heritage projects. Including seeking UNESCO World Heritage status for the three Astronomical Observatories across the island, as connected sites with unique scientific and built heritage value.

Also, this year, the Office of Public Works will advance plans for a major enhancement of the Battle of the Boyne site in County Meath.

Of course, action by Government can only ever be part of the story.

We want to see the strong trade and economic linkages across this island continue to grow.

A flourishing all-island economy brings benefits to both jurisdictions, helping to create jobs, enterprise and tax revenues that, in turn, contribute to prosperity and better services to society at large. We will continue to advocate for, and support, strong economic links, not just across the island but also between Ireland and the United Kingdom and between Ireland and Europe.

Conclusion

Dear friends, it is time to invest in people, in the common good, and in the generations to come.

This is our opportunity, with the Executive and Assembly now back to represent, and make decisions on behalf of all sections of society.

Good governance will make real the principles of partnership and parity of esteem.

No identity or constitutional aspiration is diminished by working for the collective good. A shared space is not a lost space.

Working together with mutual understanding and respect we can build a more imaginative, more prosperous and more inclusive future for all.

Thank you.