On 6 March 2023 members of the British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly (BIPA) held an extraordinary plenary in Belfast to mark the 25th anniversary of the signing of the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement.
The sitting was held in the Northern Ireland Assembly Chamber in Parliament Buildings, Stormont: the Assembly Speaker granted its use to BIPA for the plenary.
Bertie Ahern, An Taoiseach from 1997 to 2008, and Sir John Holmes GCVO KBE CMG, Principal Private Secretary to the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1995 to 1999, addressed the Assembly on the significance of the Agreement and responded to questions.
A panel comprising Kate Fearon, Bronagh Hinds, Dr Avila Kilmurray and Jane Morrice, all former members of the Women’s Coalition, reflected on the process leading up to the Agreement and its overall significance, and discussed their observations with Assembly members.
Dr Jonny Byrne, School of Criminology, Social Policy and Politics, Ulster University addressed the Assembly on policing under the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement.
Read the Assembly’s Programme of Business for the 63rd plenary here.
Read the speeches and contributions made at the 63rd plenary here.
The Assembly debated and adopted resolutions as follows:
POLICING UNDER THE BELFAST/GOOD FRIDAY AGREEMENT
That the Assembly has considered the progress made in policing under the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement.
THE BELFAST/GOOD FRIDAY AGREEMENT
That this Assembly acknowledges the contribution made by the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement to peace and prosperity on these islands; marks the contribution made by the British-Irish Interparliamentary Body and the British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly to these developments; acknowledges the continuing need to address the impact of the Troubles; and looks forward to the Assembly’s contribution to the future work needed to ensure that the achievements of the Agreement continue to be built upon.