Published on 

Taoiseach speaks with Scottish and Welsh First Ministers

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar today spoke by phone with the First Minister of Scotland, Nicola Sturgeon and the First Minister of Wales, Carwyn Jones.

Both First Ministers congratulated him on his recent appointment as Taoiseach.

The Taoiseach and the First Ministers looked forward to working closely together in the coming months, including in the context of maintaining and further developing the strong bilateral relations between Ireland and Scotland and Wales.

They also expressed their commitment to the work of the British Irish Council (BIC), a key institution of the Good Friday Agreement. Noting that the BIC could play an increasingly important role in relation to Brexit, they looked forward to meeting at the next Summit of the Council, due to take place in Jersey in November.

Both conversations also touched on recent political developments in the United Kingdom, as well as the current situation in Northern Ireland.

On Brexit, First Ministers Sturgeon and Jones both repeated their strong view that the United Kingdom should remain in the Customs Union and the Single Market, while the Taoiseach said that he would continue to make the case at EU level to keep the door open for such an outcome.