Jersey hosts its first meeting of the British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly

Political leaders from around the British Isles have gathered in Jersey for a two-day summit.

Ministers from the UK, Ireland, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man are meeting in the island's capital, St Helier, for the 64th meeting of the British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly.

It is the first time one of the assembly's sessions has been hosted by one of the Crown Dependencies.

Speakers will include the UK's Northern Ireland Minister, Steve Baker, Jersey's Chief Minister, Kristina Moore, and the Irish Finance Minister, Jennifer Carroll MacNeill.

Some of the day's events had to be re-arranged after a number of delegates could not attend after fog disrupted their travel plans.

British co-chair of the BIPA, Karen Bradley, appeared to address comments made by Speaker of the House of Commons, Sir Lindsay Hoyle, last week - in which he said the Crown Dependencies and Overseas Territories had been "overlooked for too long" by Westminster.

She said: "We are long overdue to convene at the home of one of our Crown Dependency members.

"Their constructive contributions over the years have never been overlooked, but being in Jersey helps to recalibrate our thinking and internalise that this body is bigger than Britain and Ireland.

"Our deliberations will continue our mission to consolidate the relationship not only between our islands but between them and the Crown Dependencies too."

Irish Co-Chair of BIPA, Brendan Smith, said it's important to strengthen ties between the UK, Ireland and the Crown Dependencies.

He said: "We welcome the opportunity to hold a BIPA Plenary meeting in Jersey for the first time. Strand three of the Good Friday Agreement was never intended to focus solely on the relationship between Dublin and London but to embrace the totality of relationships.

"Ensuring continued East-West communication is a key part of Ireland’s bilateral relationship with the United Kingdom after Brexit and it is important that we deepen our engagement with the Crown Dependencies such as Jersey."

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