Scotland's First Minister Alex Salmond
Northern Ireland Assembly
Stormont, Belfast
Monday, June 18, 2007
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Mr Speaker, First Minister, Deputy First Minister, Ministers and Members of the Assembly.
It is a matter of considerable pride that my first speech outside my own country as First Minister of Scotland is here in Northern Ireland.
I am deeply honoured to have been asked to address this special meeting of your Assembly. Looking around this fine Senate chamber it is impossible not to be touched by a sense of history. The other feeling I get about this remarkable building is that you have been very lucky not to have had to build your own parliament at a cost of £420m.
Mr Speaker this is the first opportunity on behalf of the people of Scotland to express our support and delight at the restoration of this Assembly, and to record our admiration for the leadership shown by all parties in this chamber.
You will know how closely many in Scotland follow events here, and I am acutely aware of the difficulties you faced, and still face, on the path to progress.
In that context, the efforts of all sides to make strides forward in the interests of the people of Northern Ireland are truly remarkable. The Scottish Government and the people of Scotland salute you for that collective leadership.
Leadership is a concept which has become cheapened and devalued in modern politics. But the people in this Assembly have done something truly impressive. Over the last years you have turned a seemingly intractable conflict into a situation full of hope and optimism. That is real leadership.
Let me also perhaps surprise a few people by praising the current Prime Minister, probably for the last time before he departs office. Indeed for me, it's just about the only time since he has been in office!
It is widely accepted that his commitment to this process has been both sincere and long-lasting. I have no hesitation in paying tribute to his involvement and his commitment - as we should to the Taoiseach and all those outside Northern Ireland who contributed to building the framework for a better future.
Mr Speaker, we live in a time of historic change - both in Scotland, and here in Northern Ireland.
With your indulgence, Mr Speaker, I want to spend a few moments outlining those changes in my country and offering a vision for how our governments can unite in common cause.
It is my view that the opportunity for us to work together are greater than they have ever been.
In Scotland, it will not have escaped the notice of members in this Assembly that the SNP have just won a national election for the first time in our history, and the Labour Party have lost for the first time in 50 years. I want to put that in context. What we have witnessed is not the temporary elevation of one party; not just the exchange of one politician for another.
The change is seismic and it is vital, creating a new culture of government where no one party dominates.
And that new culture - one in which the government will win some votes and doubtless lose some too - is allowing an interest and an excitement to return to Scottish politics.
I make that point because this Assembly and the Scottish Parliament now share a political model based on necessary compromise.
The Good Friday Agreement had at its core the basic assumption that no community would be alienated from the political process. The situation here was of course very particular, but the point remains that we have a lot to teach each other about modern Government based on shared power.
Moreover, we probably both have a great deal to teach Westminster about the art of inclusive, reflective Government in the 21st Century. I sat for too long on the Westminster benches watching Orders in Council dictate important matters in Northern Ireland without so much as a 'by your leave' to be much impressed by that system.
Mr Speaker, the prevailing mood in my country is one of optimism and opportunity.
Scotland is restless for change and keen to expand its influence and to reach out beyond our shores. That was the message we took to the Scottish people and that is the agenda we now lead.
I don't stand before you as the First Minister of an independent Scotland - that must wait for another day perhaps.
But Mr Speaker, I do stand before this Assembly as a Scottish First Minister determined to maximise every opportunity to promote the Scottish national interest.
For me, and for Scotland, a central part of that strategy revolves around re-energising our external relationships - relationships which for too long have been seen solely through the prism of Westminster Government.
And that, Mr Speaker, starts today.
When this assembly reconvened, the world's media descended - doubtless seeking signs of strife and discord. What struck me then and indeed strikes me today was the ability of members to understand and respect their differences - however fundamental - whilst committing to providing better government for the people of Northern Ireland.
The Deputy First Minister hasn't stopped being a nationalist and you First Minister haven't stopped being a Unionist. Nevertheless, what matters is identifying the areas where you agree and working on those. It doesn't remove the other issues, but it allows a democratic chamber to function and an Executive to govern.
No-one in this chamber should feel that their aspirations, their view of the future, is anything other than legitimate. Differences of opinions, contrasting objectives are not just fundamental - they are necessary in a democratic society.
What matters is that they are pursued within the context of the rule of law and mutual respect for the legitimacy of all strands of opinion.
Equally, in Scotland, I am hugely proud to be the first SNP First Minister. I believe as passionately in Scottish independence as I ever did. But the people of Scotland have delivered a Parliament which demands that I win the argument on an issue by issue basis, because if I cannot win arguments then I cannot win votes.
The point is simply this - each of us now belongs to a political culture where passionately held belief and unresolved debate about the constitutional position of our respective nations can sit alongside an understanding that being in government also imposes an obligation to deal with the here and now - and not the hereafter
Although, First Minister, the hereafter may be more your specialist subject than mine!
First Minister, I was very grateful that after my election, you were the first leader to pick up the phone and offer your friendship and your congratulations. Some others elsewhere have still to manage that!
We identified then that the time is ripe for Scotland and Northern Ireland to renew our engagement, and to look afresh at areas where we can co-operate and advance our mutual interests.
In both our countries, there is new hope. There are new prospects for growth and renewal. To borrow from Seamus Heaney, we can hear the ringing of the "music of things happening."
Partnership is already a hallmark of my government - both in the way we will have to work in the Scottish Parliament, and in our wider engagement on the international stage.
Today I offer a partnership in our mutual interests, and was pleased to sign the Joint Statement.
Our political make-up may be different, but we share a unity of purpose in defending the principle of subsidiarity - and ensuring that the UK's dealings in the EU reflect our distinct circumstances.
Just as we, in Scotland, must act to ensure that the UK's negotiating line on the Common Fisheries Policy reflects our position, so too you will work to ensure that your devolved responsibilities on employment and equal opportunities are respected.
But we share much more than that political context.
We face similar economic challenges in responding to the modern global economy.
The remarkable transformation of the Irish economy in the past decade is well documented, and serves as an inspiration for Scotland but there are others worth examining - whether it be Iceland , Norway, Finland or Denmark in that arc of prosperity around Scotland.
Scotland's government believes very strongly that, with measures such as low competitive tax, we can match or even exceed that level of success.
I know that this Assembly and the Northern Ireland Executive will share those ambitions, and we are prepared to work together to generate greater prosperity for all.
As an example of the imperative of driving economic growth, I noted the support of the Northern Ireland CBI for a cut in corporation tax to 12.5%, matching the position to the South. What matters about that example is not just the substance of the policy - with which I wholeheartedly concur - but the recognition that tackling poverty and long term underperformance of regional or national economies is a matter than can unite all parties, regardless of their political stances.
Other issues on a whole range of domestic areas - agriculture, tourism, rural affairs, fishing, employment, improving the skills of our people, education, health and social inclusion - all of these are subjects where co-operation and dialogue can only be beneficial.
In 21st century government - as with 21st century business - there is no excuse for a poor flow of information, for failing to be aware of what similar organisations are doing, for lagging behind the times in terms of innovation and best practice.
The new Scottish government is determined to set new standards for Scotland - and we welcome the opportunity to engage with this Assembly in doing just that.
Mr Speaker, let me also say a word about the British Irish Council.
This is the best mechanism we currently have for Scotland and Northern Ireland to work together within the devolved structure.
Our officials are already working together within the Council - and have done so since it was established in 1999.
But when the Council summit meets here in Belfast - for the first time - next month, we have the chance to take a major step forward as a consequence of including major representation from this Assembly.
Properly handled, it can spark a new and altogether more substantial phase for the British-Irish Council.
I want that representation to count for something, to represent a robust position of behalf of our common interests on policy.
I want to see bilaterals, trilaterals with Wales, quadrilaterals - whatever network of relationships work I want to see the proper resumption of Joint Ministerial meetings. I want to see the opportunity for our assembly and parliament to pursue our interests in a proper, businesslike manner.
Let me also say something about the future relationships in these islands. Scotland is a country which has at its core an internationalism which has been much affected by centuries both of migration and also of welcoming those from other countries.
And that internationalism will now progress by building even stronger relationships with our closest neighbours.
We only have to glance at Scandinavia to see how effective that can be.
There, the small and prosperous nations of Denmark, Norway, Finland, Iceland and Sweden work successfully together in the Nordic Council to promote their common interests.
The members of the Nordic Council are free to take decisions that are right for their people in their own context.
But they can also work together, as equals, where it makes sense - to pool their expertise to bring greater benefits and prosperity to all.
Like any Scottish traveller coming to Belfast, I get the strange sense of having left my country only to arrive home.
The Scots and the Irish - both North and South - are of course bound by history, culture and language.
Only a thin band of water separate Scotland and Northern Ireland.
A century and a half ago, in the island of Islay, southernmost of the Hebrides, the Gaelic poet William Livingstone reflected upon the view of Antrim across the sea. Hugh McDiarmid, translated the Livingston poem:
"Utmost island of Europe, loveliest land under the canopy of the skies,
Often did I see your coast over the great roar of the sound of the sea."
And then . .
"In the guiltless morning of youth, I got the tales of the ages gone by,
At the hearth of Islay of Clan Donald, ere the Gaels were exiled from their heritage.
We little ones believed the stories we then heard from the mouths of the old,
And believed therefore that you were still as in those old heroic tales, joyful, exultant, happy."
Mr Speaker, I don't know if the members here today would describe themselves as 'joyful', 'exultant' and 'happy' but there is certainly an unmistakable sense of optimism on both sides of the Irish Sea.
That is what we are here to celebrate and to build upon.
There are no peoples in Europe with more in common.
The peoples of Ireland - both North and South - and the people of Scotland inhabit what John Hewitt called the "same imaginative estate."
You are the blood of our blood and the bone of our bone.
Deep in our history, the very name Scotland was used to refer to both Ireland and Scotland. Perhaps less well known is that, at one point too, the Hebrides were once mapped as the Irish Isles.
And together, our nations have borne the forces of history.
Vikings, Normans, Tudors have all had left an impact on these isles - as did the new ideas from Europe whether of reformation or enlightenment.
For centuries, there has been a flow of people between our two nations. From the Scots who were planted here from the 17th century - to the hundreds of thousands of Irish people who migrated to Scotland on the back of the Great Famine, and who helped make our nation an industrial powerhouse during the 19th and 20th centuries. When the great ships from the Clyde carried a nation in their hold.
Many American presidents believe they are Irish by descent. Some believe themselves to be Scottish by descent. Actually, most of them are Scots-Irish by descent - certainly the good ones!
That exchange of people and ideas continues.
The opportunities are to work together on developing links to our shared diaspora, to build bridges with the European Union and to influence the political and economic landscape within these islands.
My message today is that Scotland is moving forward. We are embarking on an exciting new chapter of our history, and in doing so we ask for your friendship and your support.
In return, my government stands ready to help this Assembly grow and develop in whatever ways the people represented in this Chamber so decide.
Ours are two new democracies working to develop the next phase of a centuries old friendship.
Together, Mr Speaker, let us achieve great things for those who granted us the privilege to serve.