PRESS RELEASE : UK-Ireland ties strengthened in first Foreign Secretary Ireland visit since 2017 [October 2024]

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 3 October 2024.

Foreign Secretary makes historic visit to Dublin as part of government’s drive to reset relations with Europe.

• UK and Ireland to welcome current and future collaboration on growth and climate, and global issues
• delivering on UK government commitment to reset with Ireland and the EU as a whole, David Lammy visits Ireland alongside Minister for the Constitution and European Union Relations Nick Thomas-Symonds
• new chapter of UK-Irish relations focussed on rebuilding bridges and re-establishing trust as international partners.

David Lammy will arrive in Dublin today (3 October), the first Foreign Secretary to do so in over 7 years.

This historic visit will reiterate the government’s commitment to resetting ties with Ireland and Europe and follows the Prime Minister’s visit to Dublin last month where he announced the first UK-Ireland Summit will take place next year.

Ireland is the UK’s closest neighbour, the relationship is built on close economic and cultural connections – from infrastructure and energy markets to family ties, stretching from Limerick to Liverpool. Working with Ireland powers homes, protects people and drives growth.

As part of this government’s ongoing work to reset the UK’s relations with Europe, the Foreign Secretary will hold high level talks with Tánaiste Micheál Martin.

David Lammy and Micheál Martin will seek to ensure the British-Irish partnership can reach its full potential and drive forward a modern foreign and development policy partnership.

The Foreign Secretary, David Lammy, said:

For too long our relationship with Ireland has not delivered to its full potential – but now, together, we are setting out on a new path.

Ireland is our closest neighbour in many more ways than just geography. Our energy systems, infrastructure, economic markets, culture, sporting pursuits and family trees are deeply intertwined.

Let’s use this unique connection to strengthen our partnership to help both the UK and Ireland forge a more secure and prosperous future.

As a key member of the European Union, a closer friendship with Ireland will ensure the UK’s relationship with the EU can continue to improve – echoing the Prime Minister’s determination to move beyond Brexit, including work towards a security pact and the implementation of the Windsor Framework.

The Minister for the Constitution and European Union Relations will also meet the Minister of State for Europe, Jennifer Carroll MacNeill TD, to discuss a number of issues including the reset in the UK’s relationship with the EU, following the Prime Minister’s meeting with the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen on Wednesday.

Minister for the Constitution and European Union, Nick Thomas-Symonds, said:

As the Prime Minister and President von der Leyen confirmed yesterday, our shared challenges require stronger cooperation between the UK and EU.

I’m delighted to be in Dublin today with the Foreign Secretary to discuss how the UK, Ireland and the EU can start to build the stable, positive and forward-looking relationship we need for long term cooperation.

The reset relationship will also focus on delivering climate-conscious growth for businesses and workers in both the UK and Ireland. This will help to protect the economy, create jobs, and seize the opportunity of the transition.

The Foreign Secretary, a year on since the launch of the 2 Co-Centres for Climate, Biodiversity, Water and for Sustainable Food Systems, will visit Trinity College Dublin to see the work being done to address the climate crisis first hand.

Collectively, the Co-Centres house research for innovation and policy across climate, biodiversity and water challenges. Together the UK and Ireland are deploying the brightest minds to ensure collective, multilateral action on the defining challenge of our times.

Whilst at Trinity, the Foreign Secretary will meet with Mary Robinson – Ireland’s first female President – who now serves as Adjunct Professor for Climate Justice at the College. The Foreign Secretary will hear from Mary Robinson and her colleagues how the UK and Ireland can employ these strategies to tackle the climate crisis.

This follows the Foreign Secretary’s Kew Lecture, where he outlined how action on climate is vital to our security, prosperity and future.

On the world stage, the UK and Ireland share an unbreakable commitment to the UN, to the European Convention on Human Rights, to justice, accountability and the rule of law. Both countries stand together against Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine and for an immediate ceasefire in the Middle East.

The UK and Ireland know how to work together for peace; the Good Friday Agreement is one of the nations’ proudest shared achievements and a cornerstone of modern conflict resolution. The foreign ministers will discuss how the UK and Ireland can work more closely on peacebuilding efforts around the globe.