Taoiseach no longer to attend Belfast summit

The Taoiseach's visit to Belfast for a cross-border business summit and meetings with political leaders will no longer take place due to a schedule change.

Micheál Martin was due to be the keynote speaker at the inaugural Dublin Belfast Economic Corridor (DBEC) summit.

The event at the International Convention Centre will bring together more than 600 business and civic leaders from the public, private and voluntary sectors.

The Taoiseach was to focus on initiatives by the Shared Island Fund, which has backed a number of major projects including the Narrow Water bridge which will link counties Down and Louth.

The Cabinet this week gave approval to allocate more than €50 million towards a range of cross-border projects and the Government has committed to increasing the Fund by a further €1 billion up to 2035.

Plans for an economic corridor between Dublin and Belfast were launched in March 2021 by the eight local authorities it passes through, with four local councils on each side of the border.

More than two million people live in the eight council areas the economic corridor passes through.

The Taoiseach was also expected to travel to Stormont to meet Northern Ireland's First and Deputy First Ministers Michelle O'Neill and Emma Little Pengelly.