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<p>The Northern Ireland Protocol to the Withdrawal Agreement, at Article 13, contains
a commitment that the UK and the EU will respectively maintain the necessary conditions
for North-South cooperation following the UK’s withdrawal from the EU. This includes
tourism, which is a formal area of cooperation agreed by the North-South Ministerial
Council (NSMC) under Strand II of the Belfast Agreement.</p><p>The Attorney-General’s
legal commentary on the Agreement made clear that Article 13 does not alter the remit
or functions of the NSMC or the North-South Implementation bodies, nor does it alter
arrangements under Strand II of the 1998 Agreement in any way. The Protocol acknowledges
that the UK and Ireland may continue to make new arrangements that build on the provisions
of the 1998 Agreement in other areas of North-South cooperation on the island of Ireland.
In accordance with the position set out in the recitals, the functions and safeguards
of the Assembly and the NSMC (including cross-community provisions) will be respected
in full.</p><p>Thus the Protocol and its recitals recognise that any new arrangements
- whether expansion or diminution in areas of cooperation - are a matter for the Northern
Ireland Executive and Irish Government alone, through the NSMC. The status, functions,
and remit of Tourism NI and Tourism Ireland are completely unaffected.</p><p>It is
important also to note that the Article also does not require any application of EU
law in Northern Ireland. It is therefore exempt from the specific EU supervision and
enforcement provisions set out in the Protocol. Cooperation will remain a matter for
two sovereign jurisdictions on the island of Ireland to decide in accordance with
the respective legal regimes.</p><p>The most significant effect of the Withdrawal
Agreement in relation to tourism is to ensure that, under the Common Travel Area arrangements,
individuals can continue to travel freely between the United Kingdom, including Northern
Ireland, and Ireland.</p><p> </p>
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