British–Irish Parliamentary Assembly facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
British–Irish Parliamentary Assembly

Purpose	Governmental relations (deliberative body)
Headquarters	Secretariat London and Dublin
Origins	Good Friday Agreement
Region served	British Isles Ireland
Membership (1999)	8;  United Kingdom  Scotland  Wales Northern Ireland  Republic of Ireland  Isle of Man  Guernsey  Jersey
Official language	English, Scottish Gaelic, Scots ,Irish, Welsh
Co-chairs	Karen Bradley Brendan Smith
Joint-Clerks	Martyn Atkins Regina Boyle
Membership	25 members from the UK Parliament 25 members from the Oireachtas 5 members from the Scottish Parliament 5 members from the Welsh Parliament 5 members from the Northern Ireland Assembly 1 member from the High Court of Tynwald 1 member of the States of Guernsey 1 member from the States of Jersey
Website	http://www.britishirish.org/

The British–Irish Parliamentary Assembly (BIPA) is a special group. It brings together politicians from Ireland, the United Kingdom, and its nearby islands. These include members from the parliaments of the United Kingdom, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, and the British Crown Dependencies. BIPA's main goal is to help these elected people understand each other better. This helps them work together on important issues.

The assembly includes 25 members from the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It also has 25 members from the Oireachtas (the Irish parliament). Five representatives come from the Scottish Parliament, the Senedd (Welsh Parliament), and the Northern Ireland Assembly. One member each comes from the States of Jersey, the States of Guernsey, and the Tynwald of the Isle of Man.

History of BIPA

The assembly started in 1990. It was first called the British–Irish Inter-Parliamentary Body (BIIPB). At that time, it had 25 members from the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It also had 25 members from the Oireachtas, which is the Irish parliament.

In 1998, the Good Friday Agreement was signed. This agreement helped bring peace to Northern Ireland. It also led to the creation of the British–Irish Council. This Council brings together government ministers from different parts of the British Isles. The agreement also suggested that elected groups should work together more. This led to the expansion of the BIIPB.

In 2001, more representatives joined the assembly. These new members came from Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, the Isle of Man, Guernsey, and Jersey. This made the group even bigger and more diverse.

The assembly holds meetings regularly. For example, its 40th meeting was in Cavan, Ireland, in February 2010. Its 41st meeting was in Douglas, on the Isle of Man, in November 2010. This was the first time the assembly met in a Crown Dependency.

Important people have spoken at BIPA meetings. In October 2018, Karen Bradley, a British politician, spoke to the assembly. In October 2019, Christopher Pincher talked about how important UK-Ireland teamwork was after Brexit.

The 62nd meeting in October 2022 brought lawmakers together. They discussed trade and other shared interests. The 64th meeting in May 2023 was held in Jersey. This was another first for a Crown Dependency.

Who are BIPA Members?

The British–Irish Parliamentary Assembly has members from different parliaments and assemblies. These members represent various parts of the British Isles. The table below shows where the members come from.

Member name	Symbols		Parliament	Membership	Membership status	Members	Represented since
	Arms	Flag
United Kingdom			Parliament of the United Kingdom	full	sovereign state	25 each	1990
Republic of Ireland			Oireachtas
Scotland			Scottish Parliament		devolved government	5 each	1999
Wales			Welsh Parliament
Northern Ireland	None	None	Northern Ireland Assembly
Jersey			States Assembly		crown dependency	1 each
Isle of Man			Tynwald
Guernsey			States of Guernsey

What BIPA Does

The British–Irish Parliamentary Assembly holds two big meetings each year. These are called plenary sessions. During these sessions, all members come together to discuss important topics.

BIPA also has four smaller groups called committees. These committees meet several times a year. They focus on different areas, like:

• Matters between the Irish and UK parliaments.
• European affairs.
• Money and economy.
• The environment and social issues.

These committees write reports on their findings. They share these reports with governments for their thoughts. The reports are also discussed during the big plenary meetings. A special steering committee helps organize all this work. It also handles how the assembly runs.

See also

• Council of Ireland
• North/South Inter-Parliamentary Association
• North/South Ministerial Council
• North/South Consultative Forum
• British–Irish Intergovernmental Conference
• British–Irish Council
• Interparliamentary Forum