The First Minister of Scotland, the Rt Hon Nicola Sturgeon MSP, hosted the twenty-sixth Summit meeting of the British-Irish Council in Glasgow today. The meeting was attended by Heads of Administration and Ministers from the eight BIC Member Administrations: the Irish and UK Governments; the devolved administrations of the Welsh Government and Northern Ireland Executive; and the Governments of the Isle of Man, Guernsey and Jersey.

At the start of the Summit meeting the Council observed a minute’s silence following the death of Jo Cox, MP for Batley and Spen, and offered condolences to her family.

During the Summit meeting the Council reflected on recent elections across a number of Member Administrations. In their discussions the Council considered how they could continue to promote cooperation on issues of mutual interest and they noted there may be potential for new areas of Council cooperation. The Council also discussed the forthcoming referendum on the UK’s membership of the EU.

Ministers with particular responsibility for unpaid carers considered a detailed paper on Carers which had been prepared by the Council’s Social Inclusion work sector. The discussion was then taken forward by Heads of Administration, where the Council agreed that carers are an integral part of society. The Council noted that whilst caring can be a positive and rewarding experience, high-intensity caring in particular can result in poor carer health, both physically and mentally. The Council reflected on the benefits of preventative approaches rather than crisis-led responses, as well as greater integration of services at a local level. Member Administrations committed to working together in order to further their knowledge and understanding of good practice in supporting carers. 

Finally, the Scottish Government updated the Council on the work done in advance of the Summit to take forward the Review of the Council. The Council agreed to examine whether there are common policy objectives in emerging and established Programmes for Government across Member Administrations which may provide scope for further collaboration. The Council also agreed the introduction of a Task and Finish approach to the Council's work sectors. Work on the review will now be progressed by the Welsh Government in advance of the next Summit. 

You can read the full Communiqué of the Summit here. The Carers paper can be found here.