A cross party group of Irish MEPs has written to the president of the European Parliament requesting that Northern Ireland political representatives be granted observer status at the Brussels and Strasbourg chambers.
The MEPs say that Northern Ireland now has a unique and complex relationship with the EU's constitutional architecture, participating as it does in the EU’s single market, with an entitlement for its citizens to EU passports, and with an automatic pathway for Northern Ireland to EU membership in the event of a positive Irish unity referendum.
In the letter to President Roberta Metsola, 13 Irish MEPs, and one Italian representative, said the EU "should recognise this unique position and offer observer status to Northern Ireland political representatives in the European Parliament."
The MEPs admit that such a scenario would "require a request from the UK government".
However, they add that "we see no reason why the European Parliament could not indicate its willingness to respond positively to such a request."
Under the Northern Ireland Protocol, and later the Windsor Framework, Northern Ireland has remained in the EU single market for goods, while still being part of the UK's internal market.
The compromise was reached as part of prolonged negotiations marking Britain's exit from the European Union and was designed to ensure an open border on the island of Ireland.
The delegation of Irish MEPs wrote: "People born in Northern Ireland enjoy access to EU citizenship and should be treated as such. The Good Friday Agreement confirmed the right for all those born in Northern Ireland to claim Irish citizenship.
"As of 2022, over one-third of Northern Ireland’s population had an Irish Passport, thereby enjoying the same privileges as ordinary European citizens, including free movement throughout the EU.
"While many Northern Irish people hold European passports, they are not afforded the same rights, such as representation or oversight within the institutions."
The letter states that democratic legitimacy and oversight were addressed through the Stormont Brake mechanism within the Windsor Framework, whereby the Northern Ireland Assembly could object to the application of new or amended EU laws.
The MEPs say that this safeguard "is not easily deployed".
The letter points out that in the event of Irish reunification, Northern Ireland would automatically return to the EU, similar to East Germany’s integration after the post-Cold War reunification of Germany.
The MEPs claim that any divergences in how the single market is applied in Northern Ireland compared to the rest of the EU could "contradict the commitments of the Good Friday Agreement and ignore the unique position of Northern Ireland within the [European] Union."
They also point out that observer status is granted to acceding countries under the European Parliament Rules of Procedure.
"Given Northern Ireland’s automatic membership of the [European] Union in the event of reunification, such an observation period process would not occur.
Offering observer status to Northern Ireland representatives before a possible reunification will protect the peace process and respect the European citizens that reside there."
The prospect of offering observer status to Northern Ireland elected representatives was raised by a number of MEPs during the Brexit negotiations.
However, the Irish government did not pursue it, out of a concern that it could set a precedent for elected representatives in Catalonia, for example, to seek something similar, and that the uniqueness of the Irish issue could be called into question.
The letter was signed by;
Barry Andrews (Renew Europe Group)
Michael McNamara (Renew Europe Group)
Seán Kelly (European People's Party)
Billy Kelleher (Renew Europe Group)
Ciaran Mullooly (Renew Europe Group)
Regina Doherty (European People's Party)
Lynn Boylan (The Left group)
Kathleen Funchion (The Left group)
Maria Walsh (European People's Party)
Barry Cowen (Renew Europe Group)
Aodhán Ó Ríordáin (Socialists and Democrats)
Cynthia Ní Mhurchú (Renew Europe Group)
Nina Carberry (European People's Party)
Elisabetta Gualmini (Italian, Socialists and Democrats)
