Northern Ireland Executive Office Brussels

On Wednesday 19^th June, The Office of the Northern Ireland Executive in Brussels was delighted to welcome back screenwriter and author Colin Bateman. Hailing from County Down, Colin had previously visited Brussels in 2014 for the Brussels Book Fair, and it was great to have him back in the Office to introduce his 2017 film ‘The Journey’.

Colin introduced the film by explaining the ‘journey’ behind ‘The Journey’ – producers had struggled to find a screenwriter willing to create a script around the events of the St Andrew’s Agreement, and the relationship between the Reverend Ian Paisley and Martin McGuinness. However, inspired by the subsequent media coverage of the unexpected friendship between the late former First and Deputy First Ministers, Mr Bateman wasn’t afraid to incorporate his famously witty writing style into a story imagining the first real interactions between the two men.

Screenwriter Colin Bateman with Deputy Head of Office Lynsey Moore

While enjoying the film, the audience tucked into food and beverages from Northern Ireland – ‘Pop-notch’ gourmet pop-corn, cider from Longmeadow Cider and the Armagh Cider Company, as well as beers from Clearsky Brewery and Hilden Brewery. The audience enjoyed the film – described by the reviewers as ‘a remarkable mixture of light and darkness’ – and took the opportunity to ask Colin about the production of the film and the wider film industry. Colin also regaled the audience with stories from the set and of his interactions with stars such as Liam Neeson.

Colin explained to the audience that, while some critics argued the film is historically inaccurate in parts, ‘The Journey’ tells a fictional story that was never intended to be a documentary! He noted that history doesn’t come in neat three act scripts to be portrayed on screen, and ‘The Journey’ uses an imagined situation to explore the essence of the friendship between the Reverend Ian Paisley and Martin McGuinness.

On Wednesday 23^rd May, Alan Whysall visited the Brussels office to present ‘A Reflection of the Good Friday Agreement’, providing a personal account of his experience of the negotiations that led to the Good Friday Agreement.  The event was designed to give a Brussels audience a background to the Good Friday Agreement in light of the interest in the subject stemming from the UK withdrawal negotiations.

Alan is a former Senior Northern Ireland Office Civil Servant, with over 20 years’ experience in the Northern Ireland peace process and is now an Honorary Senior Research Associate at the Constitution Unit at University College London.

Alan’s account covered his involvement in the negotiations that led to the Agreement as well as its implementation during his time as a civil servant at the Northern Ireland Office. He also addressed the areas where he considered the Agreement could have achieved more, and outlined the benefits it has brought to Northern Ireland. Alan, concluded his speech by discussing the future of the Agreement in the context of the UK’s withdrawal from the EU.

The breadth of the material covered by Alan gave the audience an insight into the environment in which the agreement was negotiated.  The talk provoked a lively discussion and the audience, which included several officials working in posts relating to the UK withdrawal negotiations, reported that they found the event informative, with some taking to twitter to share a positive review.

We’ve got that FRY-day feeling! On 16^th March, the famous Ulster Fry made its highly anticipated return to Brussels as the Office of the Northern Ireland Executive in Brussels, and Invest NI, jointly hosted the fourth annual Ulster Fry in celebration of St Patrick’s Day. This annual event provides an opportunity to promote Northern Ireland in Europe and to showcase the region’s top produce.

We were delighted to welcome over 100 guests, including European Ambassadors, EU Officials from the European Institutions, members of the Northern Ireland diaspora living and working in Brussels, and other key stakeholders, through the office doors to enjoy a traditional Ulster Fry breakfast. The fry was freshly prepared using Northern Ireland’s finest award-winning ingredients, supplied by Northern Ireland producers Yellow Door Deli and Carnbrooke Meats. Guests also had the chance to sample a range of Belfast-based Suki teas and refreshing AJ apple juice from the Armagh Cider Company.

This year our Ulster Fry Breakfast also featured music from Celticanto – a Brussels-based, three piece a cappella group, specialising in Irish music in the operatic bel canto style. Established by County Down born, Páidí Ó Dubháin, the trio includes bass-baritone Jean Delobel from France and Mark Trigg from the United States of America. In their interpretations of traditional Irish music, the three classically trained baritones impressed our guests with a cappella performances of classical songs such as ‘Star of the County Down’ and ‘Ballynure Ballad’.

The breakfast was a great success enjoyed by all who attended and received particular praise on social media. Information on the Northern Ireland produce showcased at the breakfast can be found on the producers websites linked below, or for further information on Northern Ireland produce in general you can visit FoodNI. 

On 19 February a group of 26 Civil Servant representing all NICS Departments travelled to Brussels for a two day study visit. The annual visit is designed to provide participants with an understanding of how the EU works and to increase Northern Ireland’s engagement within the EU. Since last year the study visit has focused on the UK withdrawal from the EU, and this year it coincided with the start of phase two of the negotiations.

The Brussels Office organised an intensive programme for the participants to deepen their understanding of the EU Institutions and its legislative processes, and to develop their insight into the exit negotiations happening in Brussels. The participants heard from representatives of the Article 50 teams from the UK and Irish Permanent Representation to the EU about their respective roles in the negotiations. The participants also heard from the Head of the Welsh office in Brussels about how they engage with the UK Permanent Representation, the EU and others as a Devolved Administration in Brussels. A representative of the Swiss Mission to the EU explained to the group about engagement as a third country, which reflects ongoing work in the Brussels Office to develop understanding of how third country missions engage with the EU.

The programme included a visit to the European Parliament, where the group received a very informative overview of the EU, with a focus on the UK withdrawal. They then met with Northern Ireland’s three MEPs, Jim Nicholson, Diane Dodds, and Martina Anderson, who explained the role of the Parliament in the UK exit negotiations as well as setting out their own views on the current political developments in the EU. Wednesday afternoon was given over to individual meetings where participants met with their counterparts in the European Commission, the UK Permanent Representation or from another Member States to discuss specific policy issues.