Editing British Isles (section)

==Politics==
{{See also|Ireland–United Kingdom relations|Politics of the United Kingdom|Politics of the Republic of Ireland|Ireland–Isle of Man relations|Politics of the Isle of Man|Politics of Jersey|Politics of Guernsey|Politics of Alderney|Politics of Sark}}
[[File:British Isles Euler diagram 15.svg|right|thumb|upright=1.25|An [[Euler diagram]] of the subdivisions of the British Isles. Geographical subdivisions are in green, political subdivisions in blue.]]
[[File:British Isles (political structures).jpg|thumb|Relations within the British Isles include both [[Politics|political]] and [[Economy|economic]] arrangements{{Efn|Examples of relations within the British Isles include: [[British–Irish Intergovernmental Conference]], [[British–Irish Parliamentary Assembly]], [[British Irish Council]], [[North/South Ministerial Council]], [[Common Travel Area]], [[United Kingdom - Crown Dependencies Customs Union]], [[European Single Market]], [[Euro]], [[EU Customs Union]], [[United Kingdom Internal Market Act 2020|UK Internal Market]], [[Pound Sterling]]}}]]

There are two sovereign states in the British Isles: [[Republic of Ireland|Ireland]] and the [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland]]. Ireland, sometimes called the Republic of Ireland, governs five-sixths of the island of Ireland, with the remainder of the island forming Northern Ireland. Northern Ireland is a part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, usually shortened to simply "the United Kingdom", which governs the remainder of the archipelago with the exception of the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands. The Isle of Man and the two Bailiwicks of the Channel Islands, [[Jersey]] and [[Bailiwick of Guernsey|Guernsey]], are known as the [[Crown Dependencies]]. They exercise constitutional rights of self-government and judicial independence;<ref name="Gov.je">{{cite web |url=http://www.gov.je/Government/JerseyWorld/InternationalAffairs/Pages/RelationshipEUandUK.aspx |title=Jersey's relationship with the UK and EU |publisher=Gov.je |access-date=7 November 2010 |archive-date=13 November 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101113143949/http://www.gov.je/Government/JerseyWorld/InternationalAffairs/Pages/RelationshipEUandUK.aspx |url-status=dead}}</ref> responsibility for international representation rests largely with the UK (in consultation with the respective governments); and responsibility for defence is reserved by the UK. The United Kingdom is made up of four [[Countries of the United Kingdom|constituent parts]]: England, Scotland and Wales, forming Great Britain, and Northern Ireland in the northeast of the island of Ireland. Of these, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have [[Devolution|devolved]] governments, meaning that each has its own parliament or assembly and is self-governing with respect to certain matters set down by law. For judicial purposes, Scotland, Northern Ireland and [[English law|England and Wales]] (the latter being one entity) form separate legal jurisdictions, with there being no single law for the UK as a whole.

Ireland, the United Kingdom and the three Crown dependencies are all [[parliamentary democracies]], with their own separate parliaments. All parts of the United Kingdom return [[Member of Parliament (United Kingdom)|Members of Parliament]] (MPs) to [[Parliament of the United Kingdom|parliament in London]]. In addition to this, voters in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland return members to a [[Scottish Parliament|devolved parliament in Edinburgh]] and [[Senedd|in Cardiff]] and an [[Northern Ireland Assembly|assembly in Belfast]]. Governance in the norm is by majority rule; however, Northern Ireland uses a system of [[Consociationalism|power sharing]] whereby [[Unionism in Ireland|unionists]] and [[Irish nationalist|nationalists]] share executive posts proportionately and where the assent of both groups is required for the [[Northern Ireland Assembly]] to make certain decisions. (In the context of Northern Ireland, unionists are those who want Northern Ireland to remain a part of the United Kingdom and nationalists are those who want Northern Ireland to join with the rest of Ireland.) The [[British monarch]] is the head of state of the United Kingdom, while in the Republic of Ireland the head of state is the [[President of Ireland]].

Ireland is the only part of the isles that is a member state of the [[European Union]] (EU). The UK was a member between 1 January 1973<ref>{{Cite web |title=The United Kingdom's accession to the EC - Decolonisation: geopolitical issues and impact on the European integration process - CVCE Website |url=https://www.cvce.eu/en/education/unit-content/-/unit/dd10d6bf-e14d-40b5-9ee6-37f978c87a01/3cf54bc7-03f0-4306-9f25-316d508d0c38 |access-date=30 April 2021 |website=www.cvce.eu}}</ref> and 31 January 2020, but the Isle of Man<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.gov.im/cso/externalrelations/eu.xml |title=Relationship with European Union – Isle of Man Government – Chief Secretary's Office |publisher=Gov.im |access-date=7 November 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100925081145/http://www.gov.im/cso/externalrelations/eu.xml |archive-date=25 September 2010}}</ref> and the Channel Islands were not.<ref name="Gov.je"/><ref>{{cite web|url=https://gov.gg/guernseyandtheworld |website=States of Guernsey |title = Guernsey and the World |date=20 November 2015 |publisher=Gov.gg |access-date=12 October 2020}}</ref> Since the [[partition of Ireland]], an informal free-travel area has existed across the island of Ireland. This area required formal recognition in 1997 during the course of negotiations for the [[Amsterdam Treaty]] of the European Union, and (together with the Crown dependencies) is now known as the [[Common Travel Area]]. As such, Ireland is not part of the [[Schengen Area]], which allows passport-free travel between most EU member states, and is the only member state with an opt-out from the obligation to join the Schengen Zone.<ref>See Article 4 of Protocol (No 19) on the Schengen Acquis integrated into the framework of the European Union ([https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/ALL/?uri=CELEX:12016E/PRO/19]).</ref>

Reciprocal arrangements allow British and Irish citizens specific voting rights in the two states. In Ireland, British citizens can vote in General and local elections, but not in European Parliament elections, constitutional referendums or presidential elections (for which there is no comparable franchise in the United Kingdom). In the United Kingdom, Irish and [[Commonwealth of Nations|Commonwealth]] citizens can vote in every election for which British citizens are eligible.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Johnstone |first=Neil |date=28 April 2023 |title=Who can vote in UK elections? |url=https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-8985/ |website=[[UK Parliament]]}}</ref> In the Crown dependencies, any resident can vote in general elections,<ref>{{Cite web |title=General Election 2022 |url=https://www.vote.je/general-election-2022/ |access-date=30 April 2021 |website=Vote.je - States of Jersey Elections |archive-date=30 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210430160957/https://www.vote.je/general-election-2022/ |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2 December 2019 |title=Elections & Electoral Roll |url=https://www.gov.gg/elections |access-date=30 April 2021 |website=www.gov.gg}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Isle of Man Government - Register to Vote |url=https://www.gov.im/categories/home-and-neighbourhood/elections-and-voting/register-to-vote/ |access-date=30 April 2021 |website=www.gov.im}}</ref> but in Jersey and the Isle of Man only British citizens can run for office.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Standing in the 2022 General Election|url=https://www.vote.je/standing-in-the-2022-general-election/|access-date=30 April 2021|website=Vote.je - States of Jersey Elections|archive-date=30 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210430160955/https://www.vote.je/standing-in-the-2022-general-election/|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Candidates |url=https://www.gov.im/categories/home-and-neighbourhood/elections-and-voting/2021-general-election/candidates/ |access-date=30 April 2021 |website=[[Isle of Man Government]]}}</ref> These pre-date European Union law, and in both jurisdictions go further than what was required by European Union law (EU citizens may only vote in local elections in both states and European elections in Ireland). In 2008, a [[Ministry of Justice (United Kingdom)|UK Ministry of Justice]] report investigating how to strengthen the British sense of citizenship proposed to end this arrangement, arguing that "the right to vote is one of the hallmarks of the political status of citizens; it is not a means of expressing closeness between countries".<ref>Goldsmith, 2008, [http://www.justice.gov.uk/docs/citizenship-report-full.pdf Citizenship: Our Common Bond], Ministry of Justice: London {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090327121654/http://www.justice.gov.uk/docs/citizenship-report-full.pdf |date=27 March 2009}}</ref>

In addition, some civil bodies are organised throughout the islands as a whole—for example, the [[Samaritans (charity)|Samaritans]], which is deliberately organised without regard to national boundaries on the basis that a service which is not political or religious should not recognise sectarian or political divisions.{{citation needed|date=April 2013}} The [[Royal National Lifeboat Institution]] (RNLI), a charity that operates a lifeboat service, is also organised throughout the islands as a whole, covering the waters of the United Kingdom, Ireland, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islands.<ref>{{Cite web |date=12 January 2007 |title=Royal National Lifeboat Institution |url=https://rnli.org/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230524051736/https://rnli.org/ |archive-date=24 May 2023 |access-date=26 May 2023 |website=[[RNLI]]}}</ref>

The [[Northern Ireland peace process]] has led to a number of unusual arrangements between the Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland and the United Kingdom. For example, citizens of Northern Ireland are entitled to the choice of Irish or British citizenship or both, and the Governments of Ireland and the United Kingdom consult on matters not devolved to the [[Northern Ireland Executive]]. The Northern Ireland Executive and the Government of Ireland also meet as the [[North/South Ministerial Council]] to develop policies common across the island of Ireland. These arrangements were made following the 1998 [[Good Friday Agreement]].

===British–Irish Council===
{{Main|British–Irish Council}}

Another body established under the Good Friday Agreement, the British–Irish Council, is made up of all of the states and territories of the British Isles. The [[British–Irish Parliamentary Assembly]] ({{langx|ga|Tionól Pharlaiminteach na Breataine agus na hÉireann}}) predates the British–Irish Council and was established in 1990. Originally it comprised 25 members of the [[Oireachtas]], the Irish parliament, and 25 members of the [[parliament of the United Kingdom]], with the purpose of building mutual understanding between members of both legislatures. Since then the role and scope of the body has been expanded to include representatives from the [[Scottish Parliament]], the [[Senedd]] (Welsh Parliament), the [[Northern Ireland Assembly]], the [[States of Jersey]], the [[States of Guernsey]] and the [[High Court of Tynwald]] (Isle of Man).

The Council does not have executive powers but meets biannually to discuss issues of mutual importance. Similarly, the Parliamentary Assembly has no legislative powers but investigates and collects witness evidence from the public on matters of mutual concern to its members. Reports on its findings are presented to the Governments of Ireland and the United Kingdom. During the February 2008 meeting of the British–Irish Council, it was agreed to set up a standing secretariat that would serve as a permanent 'civil service' for the Council.<ref>[Communiqué of the British-Irish Council], February 2008{{full citation needed |date=October 2020}}</ref> Leading on from developments in the British–Irish Council, the chair of the British–Irish Inter-Parliamentary Assembly, [[Niall Blaney]], has suggested that the body should shadow the British–Irish Council's work.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Purdy |first=Martina |date=28 February 2008 |title=Unionists urged to drop boycott |work=[[BBC News]] |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/northern_ireland/7268911.stm |access-date=26 May 2023}}</ref>