Sunak seeks to deepen ties with Ireland and devolved leaders at summit

ITV News Political Correspondent Romilly Weeks reports on "positive signs" at the British-Irish Council summit.

Rishi Sunak said he is "confident" of a negotiated solution in the Northern Ireland Protocol issues as he spoke of deepening the countries' "friendship" at a British-Irish Council summit.The prime minister urged “teamwork”, as the leaders of the devolved nations met at the summit in Blackpool on Thursday.

Mr Sunak, the first British prime minister to attend the council since Gordon Brown in 2007, said he wanted a resolution to be found to allow the powersharing institutions at Stormont to be restored.

In their first official meeting, Mr Sunak told Irish PM Micheal Martin: “I have spoken before about the vital importance of a strong relationship between the UK and Ireland, and I very much hope we can build on and strengthen that friendship today.”

Scotland First Minister Nicola Sturgeon also attended, with Wales' First Minister Mark Drakeford joining virtually after testing positive for coronavirus.

The purpose of the British-Irish Council, created by the Good Friday Agreement, is to foster co-operation between the nations of the UK and Ireland.

On the Northern Ireland Protocol, the prime minister “stressed that the UK’s strong preference is for a negotiated solution with the EU”, according to Downing Street.

Mr Sunak later reflected on the meeting as “very positive” and said: “We need to protect Northern Ireland’s place in the United Kingdom.

“And that will require everyone to enter into these talks with a spirit of goodwill and pragmatism.

“I’m confident if we can do that, working together, we can find a way through.”

The summit came after Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris announced plans to extend a deadline for calling a Stormont election and cut the pay of Assembly members, amid continuing political deadlock in the region.

The absence of a powersharing executive meant that Northern Ireland was not represented by any politicians at the talks, with the head of the civil service there, Jayne Brady, attending instead.

In their first face-to-face meeting since Mr Sunak entered No 10, Ms Sturgeon called on the prime minister to urgently send more money to devolved governments amid the “extreme pressure being faced by public services like the NHS”.

A spokesman for the Scottish Government said Ms Sturgeon and the prime minister had a “constructive and cordial discussion” at the summit.

Mr Drakeford welcomed “the return of constructive dialogue” with the prime minister, after not being contacted by Mr Sunak’s predecessor Liz Truss during her brief tenure at No 10.

Mr Sunak later tweeted it had been “great” to meet the devolved leaders, adding: “Teamwork, absolute focus and collective effort will be required to deal with the shared challenges faced by people across the UK.”

Sinn Fein Vice President Michelle O’Neill, who could not attend proceedings due to the crisis at Stormont, earlier said the summit represented a “test” for Mr Sunak, with "an opportunity for a very strong statement".

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