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  1. Overview: Northern Ireland Brooke/Mayhew Talks 1991-1992
  2. Full Record: Northern Ireland Brooke/Mayhew Talks 1991-1992
  3. Committee:All-Party Negotiations
  4. Session: 1992-05-05 10:35:00
  5. Event type: CREATE

Northern Ireland Brooke/Mayhew Talks 1991-1992

WORK IN PROGRESS - IN THE FINAL STAGES OF EDITING A series of talks launched by Peter Brooke, Secretary of State for Northern in Ireland, which began in April 1991, and were carried on intermittently by Brooke and his successor, Patrick Mayhew, until November 1992.

All-Party Negotiations

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Document introduced in:

Session 11449: 1992-05-05 10:35:00

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Political Talks: Common Principles (5 May 1992)

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ANNEX A

POLITICAL TALKS: COMMON PRINCIPLES

1. Taking as read the statement of 26 March 1991 in which it was accepted that the talks must focus on three main relationships, talks participants have identified a number of principles which should underlie any new political institutions in Northern Ireland.

2. It is agreed that they should be -

a. based on democratic principles and reflect the wishes of the electorate;

b. widely acceptable in the sense of providing an appropriate and equitable role for both sides of the community, such that both main parts of the Northern Ireland should be able to identify with it and feel that their representatives have a meaningful role to perform;

c. stable and durable in the sense of not being dependent on a particular election result or political deal. The system should, so far as possible, be self sustaining;

d. capable of evolution, in response to changing political realities, with the agreement of all concerned;

e. workable, in the sense of being as straightforward to operate as possible;

f. such as to avoid any entrenchment of the main community division and to enable the development of a fully pluralist society in which both main traditions would have parity of esteem;

g. such as to provide all constitutional political parties a role at an equal level of responsibility, and power proportional to their electoral strength in broad terms;

h. able to function effectively, efficiently and decisively within clearly defined areas of responsibility;

i. innovative, in the sense of learning from and not modelled on any previous arrangements.

3. It was also suggested that any new political institutions should be:

a. established within a newly defined relationship with UK institutions;

b. competent to manage any relationship developed in strand two of the talks;

c. capable of developing a direct relationship with EC institutions;

d. compatible with any arrangements there might be for devolving powers to other countries or regions within the United Kingdom;

e. capable of developing relationships with any devolved institutions in Great Britain;

f. capable of securing public endorsement;

g. consistent with the maximum possible delegation of authority;

h. such as to ensure the greatest possible degree of parliamentary scrutiny of and public accountability for the exercise of powers of government within Northern Ireland.

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