Sunningdale Agreement participant Liam Cosgrave
Council of Ireland
Provisions for a Council of Ireland existed in the Government of Ireland Act 1920, but these had never been carried out in practice. Unionists resented the idea of any "interference" by the Republic of Ireland in their newly established region. In 1973, after agreement had been reached on the formation of an executive, agreement was sought to re-establish a Council of Ireland to stimulate co-operation with the Republic of Ireland. Talks were held between 6 and 9 December in the Berkshire town of Sunningdale between the British Prime Minister Edward Heath, the Irish Taoiseach Liam Cosgrave and the three pro-agreement parties.
The talks agreed on a two-part Council of Ireland: