Volume 8 1945~1948


Doc No.
Date
Subject

No. 484 NAI DT S14222

Memorandum from Frederick H. Boland to Éamon de Valera (Dublin)
'Standing Joint Committee on Anglo-Irish Economic Relations'

Dublin, 13 February 1948

  1. The attached Memorandum and draft Press release1 will be considered at the meeting of the Government to be held on Tuesday, the 17th February. They deal with the proposed Standing Joint Committee to be set up by the British and ourselves on economic relations between the two countries.
  2. In the first paragraph of the memorandum and draft Press release is a quotation from the announcement issued to the Press after the meetings between Ministers of the two Governments on the 3rd and 4th November in London. The full text of the announcement is attached. The proposals now submitted to the Government are in harmony with that announcement. These proposals, including the terms of reference, have received the approval of the Ministers for Industry and Commerce, Finance and Agriculture on the Irish side and are understood to be acceptable to the British Ministers concerned subject to the approval of their Government.
  3. Meetings of the Standing Joint Committee are to be held at intervals not exceeding four months. The Irish side had proposed three months and the British side six months, but four months may be regarded as a satisfactory compromise.
  4. Paragraph (b) of the terms of reference indicates that the Committee is not intended to replace or interfere with the despatch of current business between the two countries through the existing channels. It would be of the highest importance that in all matters, whether brought to the attention of the Committee or not, there should be complete co-operation between our own Departments in their dealings with British Departments and that each of our Departments should keep the other Irish Departments concerned fully and continuously informed of such dealings.